人民币兑美元汇率增至７．０１

郑红燕

The yuan rose to the strongest since the dollar peg was scrapped in 2005, as authorities seek a stronger currency to curb inflation and lower foreign currency reserve build-up.

The Peoples Bank of China, the central bank, set the central parity trading rate at 7.0130 yuan against the greenback, from Wednesdays 7.0252. The yuan has gained 3.7 percent against the dollar since the beginning of 2008.

Analysts say it wont be many days before one US dollar trades less than 7 yuan, a new milestone since China scraped a fixed exchange rate system in July 2005.

Economists and policy-makers believe that a stronger yuan will help reduce the countrys massive trade surplus, mop up excessive liquidity on the market, and effectively curb domestic inflation, which rose to a 11-year high of 8.7 percent in February.

“The need to ease inflation and cut the trade surplus keeps pushing up the yuan,” Hao Shufei, a foreign-exchange trader at the Chinese unit of ABN Amro Bank NV in Shanghai, was quoted as saying by the Bloomberg.

The yuan, which advanced 7 percent against the greenback in 2007, gained the most in a week.

The recent quickening appreciation of the yuan seemingly underscores the Chinese governments determination to rein in big domestic prices rises. Some analysts said that Beijing has resorted to two-pronged approaches to fight inflation: rapid yuan revaluation and rein-in of liquidity on the money market.

The central bank ordered the reserve ratio that commercial banks are required to deposit in the central bank, be raised to 15.5 percent, effective from March 25. The measure is expected to recover 210 billion yuan from the market.

Others say that the latest acceleration in the rise of the yuan might be the beginning of Chinas efforts to narrow the trade imbalance while better meeting domestic consumption with more imports.

随着政府寻求更强势的货币以抑制通货膨胀和降低外汇储备增长，人民币汇率创自2005年废除盯住单一美元的货币政策以来的新高。

央行中国人民银行将人民币兑美元汇率中间价从周三的一美元7.0252元人民币调至7.0130。自2008年开始以来，人民币兑美元汇率已经增长了3.7%。

分析人士表示，用不了多久一美元兑换人民币将低于7元，这将是自中国2005年7月废除固定汇率制度以来一个重要的转折点。

经济学家和政策制定者认为，更强势的人民币将有助于减少巨大的贸易顺差，消除市场上资产流动性过剩，并将有效地抑制国内通货膨胀，而通货膨胀率于今年二月达到近十一年来的最高的8.7%。

彭博资讯援引荷兰银行控股中国子公司外汇交易员郝书飞的话说:“平抑通胀及削减贸易顺差的需要持续推升人民币汇率。”

人民币兑美元汇率继2007年上涨7%之后，一周之内增幅创下新高。

显然，人民币近期的快速增值加强了中国政府控制国内物价大幅上涨的决心。一些分析人士说，北京已经采取了两方面的措施来抑制通货膨胀，即：加快人民币升值、严格控制货币市场的流动性。

央行规定商业银行被要求在央行储蓄的储备金率上调至15.5%，这一规定从3月25日起生效。这一措施有望从资本市场收回人民币2100亿元。

还有一些分析人士认为，最近人民币升值的加速可能是中国在通过更多的进口更好地满足国内消费需求的同时努力缩小贸易不平衡的开始。