China's Q4 forex reserves down from previous quarter

China's central bank said Friday that the country's foreign exchange reserves as of the end of the fourth quarter last year topped US$3.18 trillion, down US$20.6 billion from the previous quarter.

The net quarterly decrease was a rare case in recent years in the country, which is currently the largest holder of foreign exchange reserves around the world.

In breakdown, foreign exchange reserves increased by US$72.1 billion in October, but decreased by US$52.9 billion and US$39.76 billion respectively in November and December, according to data from the People's Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank.

However, on a year-on-year basis, the nation's foreign exchange reserves still expanded from US$2.85 trillion by the end of 2010.

The PBOC data released Friday also showed the country's yuan funds outstanding for foreign exchanges fell to 25.36 trillion yuan (US$4 trillion) in December, down 100.3 billion yuan from November. The December data also marked the third monthly decline.