The Chinese yuan’s share of foreign exchange reserves in countries around the world increased to 2.45%, breaking its previous high.
According to Chinese media on the 2nd, the yuan’s share of global foreign exchange reserves in the first quarter rose 0.25 percentage points from 2.2 percent in the previous quarter in the latest data released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The total amount of yuan-denominated foreign exchange reserves stood at $287.46 billion in the first quarter, up from $269.49 billion in the previous quarter, and continued to increase for the ninth consecutive quarter.
The dollar, which accounts for the largest portion of the world’s foreign exchange reserves, rose from 59.02 percent in the fourth quarter of last year to 59.54 percent in the first quarter of this year. In addition, the euro and yen accounted for 20.57% and 5.89%, respectively.
“Central banks in each country have continued to increase their yuan assets in recent years,” Jeil Jae-kyung said. “The relative return on Chinese assets is high and the relationship between U.S. and European assets is relatively low, so distributed investment can be made.
In addition, the yuan was incorporated into the IMF special withdrawal basket in 2016, and the recent strength of the yuan also had a positive impact.
However, the media said, “The yuan’s internationalization depends on the frequency of yuan use in the international market,” adding, “As of May, the yuan rose one notch to the fifth largest portion in the global currency rankings.”
