China’s yuan gains importance

China's national currency, the yuan, made it into the top ten of the world's most important currencies, according to a report released by the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) on Thursday.

The yuan rose to become No. 9 on the list due to a significant expansion in foreign currencies (Forex) trading, said the Swiss-based bank, which is an international organization for central banks.

"Along with the Mexican peso, China's yuan has seen the most significant rise in market share among major emerging market economies," the BIS report said.

According to BIS data, in April this year the turnover in trades involving yuan reached $120 billion (91 billion euros) a day on average, which was three and a half times more than the $34 billion it achieved in 2010.

The currency is not fully convertible. But Beijing has loosened controls recently, allowing companies to settle international transactions in yuan.

US dollar remains on top while Euro drops

However, the significance of China's currency is still dwarfed by a number of other currencies, notably the US dollar.

The US currency had remained the uncontested global financial market leader, accounting for 87 percent of all currency trades in April with a daily volume of $4.7 trillion, the BIS report said.

The report also noted that the single European currency, the euro, dropped slightly in significance, achieving a market share of 33 percent, down from 39 percent in April 2010.

Overall, the volume of foreign currency transactions surged by about 33 percent over the past three years to an average of $5.3 trillion per day in April 2013, the bank found. In addition, foreign currency trading was increasingly concentrated in the financial hubs of Britain, the United States, Singapore and Japan, which handled 71 percent of world transactions.

uhe / rg (AFP, AP)