Central bank ends yuan fix's ten-session weakening streak

The People’s Bank of China broke a ten-session weakening streak Monday, setting the daily midpoint for the yuan 0.09% stronger against the US dollar, The Financial Times reported. The central bank had appeared to provide tacit approval for more devaluation in early December with an announcement that the yuan would be measured against a basket of currencies; that followed a surprise August announcement that the fix would have some basis in market forces, which caught traders off guard. “They want to surprise the market and create some uncertainty. But the pressure on CNY is still there,” said Zhou Hao, senior emerging markets economist at Commerzbank AG.