China to speed up yuan convertibility under capital account

China today said it will step up efforts to make its currency, the renminbi or yuan, convertible under the capital account this year.
Accelerating yuan convertibility is one of the major tasks for forex authorities, China's forex regulator State Administration of Foreign Exchange said in a statement after a meeting of key officials.
The officials should facilitate international trade and investment denominated and settled in yuan, guard against impacts of cross-border capital movement and prevent systemic and regional risks, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
The yuan is currently only convertible under the current account, while its capital account convertibility is controlled by the state.

The government has on many occasions stressed the need to realise full convertibility to help the currency's internationalisation to reduce dependence on the US dollar.
While pushing bilateral trade with many counties to be done in yuan, China has permitted convertibility of the currency under capital account at the new Shanghai Foreign Trade Zone, regarded a test bed for new reforms launched by the government to revitalise the slowing down economy.