BEIJING — Chinese commercial banks continued to see a net foreign exchange purchase in May, data from the country’s forex regulator showed on June 19.

Chinese lenders bought $172.6 billion worth of foreign currencies and sold $153.2 billion worth last month, resulting in a net purchase of $19.4 billion, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) said in a statement.

In April, the banks recorded a net forex purchase of $10.6 billion.