Alexander Knobel, Senior Researcher of the International Trade Department at the Gaidar Institute, commented on the recently published statements by Chinese President Xi Jinping about the need to transform the yuan into a "strong currency" of global significance. According to the expert, the Chinese currency already serves as a reserve currency in line with the ambitious goals of the Chinese leadership.
"The Chinese yuan is already a reserve currency in a certain sense, because the International Monetary Fund has included it in its list of reserve currencies, but this is not the most important. The bottom line is that countries are actually building their gold and foreign exchange reserves, including by taking the Chinese yuan into account," noted Alexander Knobel.
The expert acknowledged that the yuan is still less widely used than the dollar or the euro. However, he emphasized its growing practical role: "Payments, savings, and state planning are carried out, inter alia, with the Chinese currency in mind. And our trade with China is a crucial component of our foreign economic activity not only because it is an important trading partner, but also because trade with China is largely conducted in a reserve currency, which albeit not 100%, to a large extent, the Chinese yuan," concluded Alexander Knobel.