Gold Prices Fall Amid Rate Jitters; Copper Steady as China Stimulus Eyed 
The latest banking statistics from the PBoC suggest a further increase in market concerns about the risk of CNY depreciation this year.
According to the PBoC press release on banking statistics, total FX deposits in China surged by USD45.2bn in January 2015 to a total of USD655.7bn (comparatively, the increase for the whole of 2014 was USD108.4bn).
Barclays notes in a report to its clients on Friday:
- While we have become aware that PBoC has made some methodological changes to banking deposits starting in 2015[1], the increase in January of USD45.2bn still marks a very large monthly increase in FX deposits compared with the historical series.
- This compares with a q/q decline of USD31.8bn in FX deposits in Q4 14, and we think the January increase cannot be fully explained by seasonal factors. Such a renewed jump in FX deposits is significant, in our view, and reflects the degree of FX pressure that has developed over recent months.
- A separate and more closely watched data series - the change in financial institutions' (FI) position for FX purchases - suggests that the PBoC has continued to intervene in the FX market to limit currency weakness as CNY fell towards the weak side of its trading band.
- FIs' position for FX purchases fell again in January, dropping USD17.4bn following a decline of USD19.1bn in December. We believe this can be largely attributed to the PBoC's FX intervention activity, even though data on the PBoC's foreign assets/FX reserves have not been released.
