Loans for use in Hong Kong shrank on a year-on-year basis by 8.2 per cent in 1999,but the monthly decline has slowed down to around 0.4 per cent in the second half,compared with a monthly average decline of 1.1 per cent during the first half.

• 按年计在港使用贷款在一九九九年大幅收缩8.；2%25，上半年的每月平均减幅为1