BEIJING — China's commercial banks saw a net forex settlement surplus of 63.2 billion yuan (about $9.73 billion) in July, the country's forex regulator said on Aug 20.

Forex purchases by banks stood at 1.39 trillion yuan, while sales reached nearly 1.33 trillion yuan, data from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange showed.

In the first seven months of the year, China's commercial banks reported a net forex settlement surplus of 939.2 billion yuan.

Supply and demand in China's foreign exchange market were generally balanced in July, said Wang Chunying, deputy director and spokesperson of SAFE.

In July, the country continued to see a surplus in cross-border trade in goods, and the net inflow of foreign direct investment in China remained high, said Wang.

The net increase in the holdings of domestic bonds by foreign investors last month indicated that the yuan-denominated assets remained attractive, she said.

Despite a more complex and severe external environment, China's economy has sustained a stable recovery with growing momentum for development, Wang said.

She added that steady progress was made in the two-way opening of the financial market, and the foreign exchange market has become more mature.