China fears depreciation of $2.45 trillion of reserves still heavy in dollars

China offered a rare insight into its foreign exchange reserves with confirmation that the vast majority are held in dollars

Roughly 65pc of China's foreign currency reserves are held in dollars, according to a report. Photo: AFP

The Chinese Government holds the largest stockpile of currency reserves at $2.45 trillion (£1.59 trillion), with 65pc held in dollars, 26pc in euros, 5pc in pounds, and 3pc in yen.

The report was published in official newspaper the China Securities Journal and confirmed analysts' estimates that about two-thirds of the reserves are invested in dollars. Until now the allocation of China's foreign exchange reserves was considered a state secret.

Separately Hu Xiaolian, a vice governor with the People's Bank of China, warned that depreciation was a risk for the foreign exchange reserves held by developing countries.

"Once a reserve currency's value becomes unstable, there will be quite large depreciation risks for assets," she wrote in an article that appeared in the latest issue of China Finance, a central bank magazine.

"The outbreak and spread of the global financial crisis has highlighted the inherent deficiencies and systemic risks in the current international currency system," she said.

"A diversified international currency system will be more conducive to international economic and financial stability," she added, calling for greater cross-border use of the yuan.

China has signalled a shift away from dollar assets in recent months, in a bid to diversify. It has sharply increased its net purchases of Japanese debt, and has raised its holdings of South Korean bonds.

The latest data also shows it has moderately reduced its holdings of US Treasuries, to $843.7bn in June from $894.8bn at the beginning of the year.

China however remains the biggest single holder of US Government bonds, and the China Securities Journal suggested that further significant diversification away from dollar assets in the short-term was unlikely.

"It is unlikely that China will increase purchases of Japanese bonds in the coming months because the yen might weaken at any time," it said.

"China is very likely to increase purchases of US Treasuries in September. The possibility for China to buy more Korean bonds can't be ruled out."

Analysts have also said the diversification represents investor desires to take advantage of the best opportunities.