The widespread use of currency in cross-border trade is an important foundation for currency internationalization. A report recently released by the People's Bank of China shows that the scale of cross-border use of RMB in my country has grown steadily. From January to August 2024, the total amount of cross-border RMB receipts and payments was 41.6 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 21.1%.

The picture shows a bank staff counting banknotes. Photo by Xinhua Agency reporter Li Xin

The "2024 RMB Internationalization Report" released by the People's Bank of China shows that in recent years, the proportion of RMB settlement in my country's goods trade receipts and payments has continued to increase. In 2023, the proportion of cross-border receipts and payments in RMB for trade in goods accounted for 24.8% of the cross-border receipts and payments in domestic and foreign currencies during the same period. From January to August 2024, the proportion increased to 26.5%.

In terms of trade in services, from January to August 2024, the total amount of RMB cross-border receipts and payments in my country's service trade was 1.2 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 22.3%; the proportion of cross-border receipts and payments in domestic and foreign currencies during the same period was 31.8%.

The report also shows that since the beginning of this year, the currency function of RMB investment and financing has been further strengthened, and foreign investors have continued to buy my country's bonds. As of the end of August 2024, the position held by foreign investors was approximately 4.6 trillion yuan, accounting for 2.7% of the total domestic bond custody, an increase of 0.3 percentage points from the end of 2023.

In addition, new progress has also been made in RMB pricing and settlement of bulk commodities. The report shows that in the first eight months of this year, the total amount of RMB cross-border settlement of major commodity trade reached 1.5 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 22.7%. At present, my country has listed 24 international futures and options products such as crude oil and iron ore, and has introduced overseas traders to provide a pricing benchmark for RMB pricing and settlement of bulk commodity transactions.

The report said that in the next stage, the People's Bank of China will further improve the basic institutional arrangements for cross-border use of RMB to better meet the needs of various entities for RMB transaction settlement, investment and financing, risk management, etc., deepen the opening of financial markets, and improve financial infrastructure. At the same time, we will strengthen the supervision of cross-border RMB business and coordinate financial openness and financial security. (Reporter Wu Yu)