The country's foreign exchange (forex) reserve increased by $417.8 billion last year, $44.1 billion less than in 2007, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) said yesterday.

The central bank also said the supply of money and loan growth picked up in December, reflecting the government's effort to boost the economy through proactive fiscal and moderately loose monetary policies.

The country's forex reserve increased by less than $45 billion in the fourth quarter to $1.95 trillion by the end of 2008, a PBOC report said.