Iraq to allow trade with China in yuan - state media

[beijingwalker]

Iraq to allow trade with China in yuan - state media​

Reuters
February 22, 20237:18 PM GMT+8

DUBAI, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Iraq's central bank said on Wednesday it planned to allow trade from China to be settled directly in yuan for the first time, in an attempt to improve access to foreign currency.

The central bank has been taking urgent steps to compensate for a dollar shortage in local markets, which prompted the cabinet to approve a currency revaluation earlier this month.

"It is the first time imports would be financed from China in yuan, as Iraqi imports from China have been financed in (U.S.) dollars only," the government's economic adviser, Mudhir Salih, told Reuters on Wednesday.

The move is the latest sign of the yuan's growing role on the international stage as China gradually opens up its financial markets and some countries look to diversify their currency exposures.

The central bank could, as part of its plan, boost the balances of Iraqi banks that have accounts with Chinese banks in yuan, it said in a statement.

Another option would be to boost local banks' balances via the central bank's accounts with JP Morgan and Development Bank of Singapore (DBS), it added.

The first option would depend on the central bank's yuan reserves, while the other would use the bank's U.S. dollar reserves at JP Morgan and DBS. The two banks would convert the dollars to yuan and pay the final beneficiary in China, Salih explained.

Iraq to allow trade with China in yuan - state media

Iraq's central bank said on Wednesday it planned to allow trade from China to be settled directly in yuan for the first time, in an attempt to improve access to foreign currency.

www.reuters.com

 

[beijingwalker]

Iraq reportedly to pay in yuan for imports from China, highlighting yuan's growing role
By Global Times
Published: Feb 23, 2023 02:32 AM

File Photo:VCG
Iraq's central bank is reportedly planning to settle trade from China in Chinese yuan for the first time to improve its access to foreign currency.

Iraq has announced that it will finance its imports from China in yuan for the first time, a move aimed at coping with its dollar shortage and seen as a potential step for the internationalization of the Chinese currency, Reuters reported on Wednesday.

The use of the yuan in international trade has seen steady progress in recent years.

The People's Bank of China, the central bank, has on Tuesday appointed a clearing bank for yuan's settlement in Brazil.

In addition, the yuan has seen increased use in Russia as a result of some western countries' sanctions on the country.

There has also been growing discussions of using the yuan in oil settlements between China and Saudi Arabia.

Iraq's economy heavily relies on crude oil export, which accounts for more than 90 percent of the country's revenues, according to Xinhua.

Iraq is the second-largest oil exporters in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), with its oil export revenue reaching $115.7 billion in 2022, according to AFP.

Iraq reportedly to pay in yuan for imports from China, highlighting yuan's growing role - Global Times

www.globaltimes.cn