BEIJING - China's new yuan-denominated lending stood at 2.76 trillion yuan ($441 billion) in the first quarter, up 294.9 billion yuan year-on-year, the People's Bank of China announced on Thursday.

New loans denominated in foreign currencies stood at $70.9 billion, the People's Bank of China said in an online statement.

It said that the country's social financing, a measure of funds raised by entities in the real economy, amounted to 6.16 trillion yuan in the first quarter, up 2.27 trillion yuan from the same period last year.