The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced Wednesday that the official foreign currency reserve assets of Hong Kong amounted to 273.2 billion U.S. dollars at the end of January.

The figure put Hong Kong in the ninth place in the rank of largest holders of foreign reserves, after the Chinese mainland, Japan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, India, Brazil and South Korea.

The city's total foreign currency reserve assets of 273.2 billion U.S. dollars represent over eight times the currency in circulation or about 55 percent of Hong Kong dollar M3.

Commenting on the trend of growth in foreign currency reserves in the past year, HKMA Executive Director Edmond Lau said that in contrast with some its Asian neighbors such as Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia which recorded significant rise in foreign reserves in recent months, the increase in Hong Kong's foreign reserves has been rather moderate because there was no net inflow of funds into Hong Kong in 2010.