BEIJING - China's foreign exchange reserves rose for the 12th straight month to reach $3.1615 trillion at the end of January, official data showed Wednesday.

The amount was slightly below the market forecast of $3.17 trillion, and $21.5 billion up from the end of December, according to the People's Bank of China (PBOC).

The stockpile has increased steadily since February 2017 after dipping below $3 trillion in January, as the economy got on a firmer footing and the yuan continued to stabilize.

The PBOC said the country's gold reserves remained unchanged at 59.24 million ounces, and was valued at $79.68 billion.