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The
poll of 77 managers, responsible for reserves worth $6 trillion,
also showed some 32 central banks are now invested in China's
renminbi, up from 20 a year ago, before the decision to add it
to the IMF's SDR basket of reserve currencies.
The negative rates prevalent in Japan and a number of European
markets has forced managers to withdraw capital from some
currencies and move into markets they previously would have
tended not to invest in, the report showed.
"Reserve managers are navigating a rapidly evolving and
unprecedented environment. As a result many have made
significant changes to their portfolios over the last year,"
said HSBC's Global Head of Central Banks, Sovereign Wealth and
Public Funds, Christian Deseglise, commenting on the report.
"Negative rates, in particular, are having far reaching
investment implications, leading to use of longer duration
instruments, an increased tolerance for credit risk and a move
into new asset classes and currencies. The use of the renminbi
as a reserve currency is also spreading at an impressive pace."
Some 80 percent of those surveyed by publisher Central Banking
Publications said the trend of negative rates had had an impact
on reserve management strategy.
All responses to the survey were on the condition that neither
the banks nor the reserve managers were named.
One European reserve manager quoted by the survey said that
central banks had reduced their exposure to currencies including
the euro, the Swiss franc, and Swedish and Danish crowns as part
of the response to negative rates.
"This rebalancing is affecting exchange rates between
currencies," the reserve manager said.
Data from the IMF last month showed the euro's share of
allocated global foreign exchange reserves shrank to less than
20 percent in the fourth quarter of last year - its lowest in
nearly 14 years.
The franc's share was roughly steady at 0.3 percent, while those
of the Danish and Swedish crown were too small to be broken out
by the data.
(Writing by Patrick Graham; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
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