China's currency, the yuan, rose sharply against the US dollar
on Wednesday following overnight huge key interest rate cut in the
United States.
The US Federal Reserve slashed the benchmark federal funds rate
by 0.75 percentage point to 3.5 percent, in an emergency attempt to
ward off rising fears of US recession.
The rate cut has prompted the US dollar to fall sharply against
other major world currencies.
The central parity rate of the yuan, known as Renminbi (RMB),
jumped by 206 basis points to 7.2350 yuan to one US dollar,
according to China Foreign Exchange Trading System.
The sharp appreciation prompted the RMB to hit the highest after
it was revalued with the ending of its peg to the US dollar in July
2005. To date, it has appreciated more than 12 percent against the
greenback.
(Xinhua News Agency January 23, 2008)
