The central bank: In July, the average daily trading volume of the two markets was 26,858.8 billion yuan, a decrease of 13.8% compared to the previous month.

On August 24, the People's Bank of China released the financial market operation situation for July 2026. At the end of July, the Shanghai Composite Index closed at 3,832.3 points, down 6.4% month-on-month; the Shenzhen Component Index closed at 13,578.9 points, down 16.2% month-on-month. In July 2026, the average daily trading volume of the two markets was 26,858.8 billion yuan, a decrease of 13.8% month-on-month. In July, the average daily transaction of interbank lending was 3,232.9 billion yuan, down 24.3% year-on-year; the average daily transaction of bond repurchase in the interbank market was 65 trillion yuan, down 14.2% year-on-year. At the end of July 2026, the outstanding balance of interbank lending was 1.0 trillion yuan, and the outstanding balance of bond repurchases in the interbank market was 9.8 trillion yuan. Original content: Financial Market Operation Situation in July 2026 I. Money Market Operation Situation In July 2026, the average daily transaction of interbank lending was 3,232.9 billion yuan, down 24.3% year-on-year; the average daily transaction of bond repurchase in the interbank market was 65 trillion yuan, down 14.2% year-on-year. At the end of July 2026, the outstanding balance of interbank lending was 1.0 trillion yuan, and the outstanding balance of bond repurchases in the interbank market was 9.8 trillion yuan. In July 2026, the monthly weighted average interest rate for overnight pledged repos (DR001) among deposit-taking financial institutions in the banking sector was 1.39%, an increase of 1 basis point month-on-month; the monthly weighted average interest rate for DR007 was 1.43%, a decrease of 2 basis points month-on-month; the monthly weighted average interest rate for overnight pledged repos (R001) in the interbank market was 1.42%, essentially unchanged month-on-month. In July 2026, the average daily interest rate spread between DR001 and the central bank's 7-day reverse repo rate was -1 basis point, and the average daily interest rate spread between R001 and DR001 was 3 basis points. Figure 1: Trends in Money Market Interest Rates Figure 2: DR001 and Central Bank Policy Interest Rates from January to July 2026 II. Bond Market Operation Situation In July 2026, the net financing of government bonds was 13,176.4 billion yuan, an increase of 694.6 billion yuan year-on-year; the net financing of corporate bonds was 4,535.9 billion yuan, an increase of 1,787.5 billion yuan year-on-year. At the end of July 2026, the bond market custody balance was 207.4 trillion yuan. In July 2026, the transaction volume in the cash bond market was 41.4 trillion yuan, down 0.6% year-on-year; the turnover rate of cash bonds in the interbank bond market was 19.2%, a decrease of 2.8 percentage points month-on-month; the trading spread for active 10-year government bonds was 0.15 basis points. At the end of July 2026, the yield on 10-year government bonds was 1.71%; the yield spread between 10-year and 1-year government bonds was 57 basis points, narrowing by 4 basis points month-on-month; the yield spread between 3-year AAA-rated medium-term notes and 3-year government bonds was 40 basis points (not adjusted for bond tax policy factors), widening by 7 basis points month-on-month. In the first seven months of 2026, the cumulative issuance of Panda bonds reached 195.73 billion yuan, with 26 new foreign institutions entering the interbank bond market. Figure 3: Trends in Government Bond Yields Figure 4: Changes in Government Bond Yield Curve in July 2026 III. Derivatives Market Operation Situation In July 2026, the transaction volume in the interbank RMB derivatives market was 67 trillion yuan, an increase of 5.0% year-on-year. At the end of July 2026, the closing price (average) of the 1-year FR007 swap rate was 1.44%, an increase of 2 basis points month-on-month. In July 2026, the transaction volume in the government bond futures market was 83 trillion yuan, down 2.5% year-on-year. At the end of July 2026, the open interest in government bond futures was 995,000 contracts, an increase of 43.9% year-on-year; the closing price of the main contract for 10-year government bonds was 109.4 yuan, an increase of 0.6% month-on-month. IV. Bill Market Operation Situation In July 2026, the issuance of commercial papers was 39 trillion yuan, and the amount of discounting was 32 trillion yuan. At the end of July 2026, the outstanding balance of commercial paper acceptance was 22.1 trillion yuan, up 11.1% year-on-year; the outstanding balance of discounts was 17.7 trillion yuan, up 13.0% year-on-year. V. Gold Market Operation Situation At the end of July 2026, the Au (T+D) contract of the Shanghai Gold Exchange closed at 884.6 yuan per gram, an increase of 0.7% month-on-month. In July 2026, gold transactions on the Shanghai Gold Exchange totaled 6,942.7 tons, an increase of 30.8% year-on-year; gold transactions on the Shanghai Futures Exchange totaled 13,000 tons, down 6.5% year-on-year. VI. Foreign Exchange Market Operation Situation At the end of July 2026, the closing price of the RMB against the US dollar in the interbank foreign exchange market was 6.7476, appreciating by 0.56% compared to the end of the previous month; the CFETS RMB exchange rate index was 102.19, depreciating by 0.39% compared to the end of the previous month. VII. Stock Market Operation Situation At the end of July 2026, the Shanghai Composite Index closed at 3,832.3 points, down 6.4% month-on-month; the Shenzhen Component Index closed at 13,578.9 points, down 16.2% month-on-month. In July 2026, the average daily trading volume of the two markets was 26,858.8 billion yuan, a decrease of 13.8% month-on-month. VIII. Holder Structure of the Interbank Bond Market At the end of July 2026, there were a total of 3,760 institutional members in the interbank bond market, all of which were financial institutions. In terms of bond holdings, the top 50 investors in corporate credit bonds held 54.2% of the total, mainly concentrated in large state-owned commercial banks (self-operated), public funds (asset management), and trust companies (asset management); the top 200 investors held 85.4% of the total. In July 2026, in terms of trading volume, based on institutional statistics, the top 50 investors in corporate credit bonds in the interbank bond market accounted for 62.1% of the trading volume, mainly concentrated in securities firms (self-operated), joint-stock commercial banks (self-operated), and fund companies (asset management), with the top 200 investors accounting for 92.2% of the trading volume. This article is compiled from the official website of the People's Bank of China; GMTEight Editor: Chen Siyu.