China’s move to stop pegging its currency to the US dollar is being applauded by investors across the globe, who hope that a rise in the currency’s value will boost the competitiveness of western companies.
In an apparent concession to the US ahead of this weekend’s Group of 20 (G20) meeting, officials in Beijing said they would allow the renminbi (rmb) to resume its appreciation against a basket of currencies. It had been pegged to the US dollar since 2008.
If the value of the rmb rises steadily from this point on, economists forecast that the cost of Chinese goods will jump, making goods from European, US, Japanese and Korean companies easier to sell.