Foreign Exchange Reserves in China

It captures China's official foreign-exchange reserves, published monthly by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE). They are the largest reserves in the world and a key gauge of the country's external solvency and exchange-rate policy.

The value of liquid foreign assets held by the central bank and SAFE (foreign currencies, deposits and overseas securities), reported in billions of US dollars at each month-end. It excludes gold, which is reported separately.

Its trend reveals whether the central bank is intervening to prop up or restrain the yuan and reflects capital flows in and out of the country. A sharp fall is often read as capital outflows or currency defence and can rattle emerging markets, while a rise signals stability.

The level is heavily affected by valuation: moves in the dollar and in the prices of the bonds held in the portfolio change the figure even when no buying or selling has taken place. Moreover, the exact composition and any derivative positions are not disclosed, which limits interpretation.