Rising yuan marks key milestone
BEIJING, May 9 -- The central parity rate of the renminbi broke the 7.70 barrier against the U.S. dollar Tuesday as the U.S. Congress on Wednesday starts a hearing on China's alleged exchange rate manipulation.
The mid-point rate stood at 7.6951 yuan to one greenback Tuesday, the first trading day after the week-long May Day holiday, according to the Chinese Foreign Exchange Trading System.
It was a gain of 104 basis points from the reference rate of 7.7055 on the last trading day before the holiday and the highest since it was de-pegged from the U.S. dollar in July 2005.
The yuan hit a new high for the 27th time this year.
Although it breached the psychological barrier of 7.70, it only shows that the currency is strengthening vis a vis the US dollar and does not have any special significance, said Yan Qifa, an economist with the Export-Import Bank of China.
