China's foreign exchange reserves unexpectedly fell for the first time in six months in April, despite recent data that suggested the world's second-largest economy is starting to steady in response to stimulus measures.

Reserves edged down $3.81 billion last month to $3.095 trillion, the People's Bank of China said. Economists had forecast the world's largest pile of reserves would rise $1.24 billion to $3.1 trillion.

The small drop in April was due to a firmer U.S. dollar and changes in prices of global assets that China holds, the foreign exchange regulator said. In April, the yuan dropped 0.24% against the U. S. dollar as the latter rose nearly 0.3% against a basket of currencies, according to Wind.

Cross-border capital flows will be basically stable in future, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange said. China's foreign exchange reserves climbed by $22.24 billion in the first four months of this year, after dropping $67.24 billion in 2018.