China's new yuan loans drop in March

BEIJING - China's new yuan-denominated loans totaled 2.73 trillion yuan ($416.3 billion) in March, down 103.9 billion yuan year-on-year, central bank data showed on Monday.

The outstanding amount of M2, a broad measure of money supply that covers cash in circulation and all deposits, increased 9.4 percent year-on-year to 227.65 trillion yuan by the end of March, according to the People's Bank of China.