China says foreign reserves at $2.27 trillion

posted: 41 DAYS 9 HOURS AGO

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SHANGHAI -China's foreign reserves, already the world's largest, hit a record high $2.273 trillion by the end of September as surging asset prices and the economic recovery attracted investment.

The People's Bank of China said in a report on its Web site Wednesday that the reserves rose about $141 billion in July-September from $2.13 trillion at the end of June.

China's reserves have ballooned as the central bank buys up dollars generated by its huge trade surplus and investment inflows.

China's economic recovery and gains in the country's currency against the dollar are also attracting outside money into stocks, real estate and other investments, analysts say.

China's reserves are more than double those of No. 2 reserves holder Japan, which has $1.05 billion.

Beijing is Washington's biggest foreign creditor and is believed to keep almost half of its reserves in U.S. Treasurys and notes issued by government-affiliated agencies.

Chinese leaders have expressed concern about the stability of the U.S. dollar and the value of Beijing's vast holdings of American government debt, though the U.S. government says China is continuing to buy substantial amounts of Treasurys.

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Chinese central bank (in Chinese): http://www.pbc.gov.cn

2009-10-14 05:40:51