SEOUL, May 16 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's money supply grew for the 10th consecutive month in March due to robust demand for deposits and securities, central bank data showed Thursday.
The seasonally-adjusted M2, or broad money, soared 1.6 percent in March compared to the previous month, keeping an upward trend since June last year, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK).
The continued growth was attributed to a strong demand for short-term financial instruments such as time deposits, transferable savings deposit, money market funds and profit-making securities.
The BOK had left its key rate unchanged at 3.50 percent since January last year, after increasing it by 3.0 percentage points over the previous one and a half years.
The M1, or narrow money, jumped 2.2 percent in March on a monthly basis, after falling 0.3 percent in the previous month.
The M1 refers to currency in circulation, demand deposits and transferable savings deposits equivalent to cash. The M2 adds money market funds, time deposits and financial products that mature in less than two years.
The liquidity of financial institutions expanded 0.9 percent in the cited month, while the liquidity aggregate, the broadest measure of money supply, climbed 1.3 percent.
The liquidity of financial institutions includes financial products with a maturity of over two years and liquidity at insurers and brokerages along with M2. The liquidity aggregate adds state and corporate bonds to the liquidity of financial institutions. ■