BEIJING, May 11 -- China's yuan-denominated loans rose by 718.8 billion yuan (104.02 billion U.S. dollars) in April, central bank data showed on Thursday.

The M2, a broad measure of money supply that covers cash in circulation and all deposits, climbed 12.4 percent year on year to 280.85 trillion yuan at the end of April, according to the People's Bank of China.

The growth rate was 0.3 percentage points lower than it was at the end of March, but 1.9 percentage points higher than at the end of April last year.