RMB Assets Show Growing Appeal For Global Investors

鄢昭

Renminbi - denominated assets remained a strong magnet for international investors amid sound long- term prospects and China's continuous efforts to open its financial market.

More than 60 percent of surveyed overseas financial institutions will increase their holdings of RMB- denominated assets，a recent white paper from the Bank of China said，citing a survey covering over 3，400 enterprises and institutions globally last year.

The proportion increased by 9 percentage points com-

由于外资对人民币资产的长期前景看好，以及我国持续扩大金融市场的对外开放，人民币资产对国际投资者仍然保持着强大吸引力。

中国银行近期发布的一份白皮书称，2021年对全球3400多家企业机构开展的问卷调查显示，超过60%的受访境外金融机构将增加人民币计价金融资产的配置。

白皮书指出，这一比例较2020年的调查结果

pared with the 2020 survey，the white paper said.

Echoing the white paper，official data has revealed that global investors showed increasing interest in pursuing RMB- denominated assets to diversify their investment portfolios over the past few years.

From 2018 to 2021，the total net increase in the holdings of domestic stocks and bonds by global investors exceeded 700 billion US dollars，with an annual growth rate of 34 percent，data from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange showed.

“Global investors' allocation in China's A-share market in 2022 is expected to continue the momentum in recent years，”said Fang Xinghai，vice chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

As the world's second largest bond market，China's bond market saw 1，035 overseas institutional investors hold a total of 3.9 trillion yuan in bonds by the end of April，surging 225 percent from the end of 2017，central bank data showed.

Last month，Chinese authorities announced measures to support qualified overseas institutional investors that were investing directly or through connectivity in the exchange bond market，and independently choosing trading venues，marking the latest move to open bond market.

There is still much room for foreign investors to further increase their holdings of RMB assets，Wang Chunying，deputy head of China's forex regulator，has said.

RMB accounts for only 2.79 percent of global forex reserves and foreign investors' holdings in China's stock and bond markets stand at a relatively low level of 3 percent to 5 percent.

The global community continued to show recognition and confidence in the Chinese financial market，as the International Monetary Fund lifted the weighting of RMB in Special Drawing Rights currency basket from 10.92 percent to 12.28 percent in May.

The rise of RMB's weighting indicates that RMB is playing an increasingly important role in international payment and settlement，reserves，investment and financing，Zhou Maohua，an analyst with the China Everbright Bank，noting that RMB internationalization is accelerating.

提升了9个百分点。

和白皮书相呼应的是，官方数据揭示，近年来全球投资者为了实现资产组合多样化，对人民币资产的兴趣日益浓厚。

国家外汇管理局的数据显示，2018年至2021年，外资累计净增持境内债券和股票超过7000亿美元，年均增速达34%。

中国证券监督管理委员会副主席方星海预计，2022年外资配置A股市场将延续过去几年的趋势。

央行数据显示，截至2022年4月末，共有1035 家境外机构投资者进入中国债券市场，总持债规模为3.9万亿元人民币，较2017年末增长了225%。中国债券市场现在是世界第二大债券市场。

上个月，中国相关部门宣布将出台措施支持合格境外机构投资者直接或通过互联互通投资交易所债券市场，自主选择交易场所。这是我国开放债券市场的最新举措。

中国国家外汇管理局副局长王春英表示，境外投资者进一步增持人民币资产还有很大提升空间。

当前人民币在全球外汇储备中只占2.79%，国内股票和债券市场中外资占比在3%至5%之间，也相对较低。

今年五月，国际货币基金组织将人民币在特别提款权（SDR）貨币篮子中的权重从10.92%上调至12.28%，标志着国际社会对人民币的认可度和信心持续增强。

光大银行分析师周茂华认为，人民币SDR权重提升，意味着人民币在国际支付与结算、国际储备、投融资方面发挥的作用越来越大，人民币国际化进程在逐步加快。