How Much Money Exists Per Person? Comparing Dollar & Yuan Supply in 2025

The Raw Totals

Money Supply Per Person

• U.S.: $21.76 T ÷ 341.1 M ≈ $63,800 per resident

• China: ¥326 T ÷ 1.424 B ≈ ¥229,000 per resident, which converts to ≈ $31,800 at ¥7.2 =CNY/USD

Pace of “Money Printing” (YoY M2 growth, latest available)

---

What the Numbers Mean

1. Global Reach vs. Domestic Base
   Roughly 60 % of official FX reserves and a majority of trade invoices are still denominated in USD, so a large share of dollars circulates outside U.S. borders. The yuan remains mostly domestic, despite a gradual rise in cross-border settlements. Per-capita figures therefore overstate U.S. residents’ liquidity and understate China’s domestic share.

2. Diverging Monetary Stances

   • Fed: Post-pandemic quantitative tightening and balance-sheet runoff have cooled dollar growth to ~4 %, below its long-run average.

   • PBOC: A consistent 7 % expansion supports credit growth and nominal GDP, but raises long-term questions about debt and asset prices.

3. Diversification Momentum
   Central banks have nudged reserve allocations toward gold and “non-traditional” currencies, while private investors increasingly hold baskets that include yuan bonds, precious metals, and digital assets as hedges against U.S. fiscal risk and geopolitical tension.