Xi outlines push for stronger yuan as Beijing eyes global reserve role

Xi Jinping is done being subtle. In a newly published commentary, China’s president made it crystal clear that he wants the renminbi to become a global reserve currency. The message was printed in Qiushi, the Communist Party’s own ideology journal.

Jinping said China must create a “powerful currency” that’s used widely in international trade, investment, as well as forex markets and earning global reserve status.

What’s new here isn’t the ambition, Beijing’s wanted this for years but how direct Jinping was this time. The article was taken from a speech he gave in 2024 to regional officials, but it’s only being released now, in 2026, while global markets are already on edge.

The US dollar has fallen to its weakest level in four years, and 47th President Donald Trump said last week that the slide is “great.” With the Fed going through a leadership change and international tensions rising, central banks are starting to rethink their dollar exposure.

China pushes renminbi as dollar weakens under Trump

“China senses the change of the global order more real than before,” said Kelvin Lam, senior China+ economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics. According to him, Jinping’s push ties directly to the current cracks in the dollar’s dominance.

In the Qiushi commentary, Jinping said a strong currency needs strong backup. He called for a “powerful central bank” that can actually manage money well, plus financial institutions that can hold their own globally. He also wants cities like Shanghai and Shenzhen to become international financial hubs that “attract global capital and exert influence over global pricing.”

Pan Gongsheng, governor of the People’s Bank of China, had said something like this last year. In a Shanghai meeting with officials and investors, he predicted a new currency order. He said the renminbi would compete in a “multi-polar international monetary system,” sharing the space with the dollar, euro, and others.

Han Shen Lin from The Asia Group added that China doesn’t want to replace the dollar overnight, but they do want the yuan to become a “strategic counterweight” that limits U.S. leverage as the global order shifts.

Renminbi gains ground in trade but still weak in reserves

The yuan has already made some gains. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, it’s become the second-most used currency for trade finance.

But in official reserves, it still trails far behind. As of Q3 2025, the dollar made up about 57% of global reserves, down from 71% in 2000. The euro sat at 20%. The renminbi? Just 1.93%, according to IMF data.

Experts say full convertibility and open capital accounts are key if China wants central banks to actually hold more renminbi. Right now, the lack of openness is a deal-breaker for many global investors.

Some of China’s trade partners also want a stronger yuan. They claim it’s undervalued, which helps Chinese exports but messes with trade balances. China’s trade surplus hit $1.2 trillion last year, and complaints about currency manipulation aren’t going away.

Even the IMF jumped in. Managing director Kristalina Georgieva said China’s deflation had “resulted in significant real exchange rate depreciation,” and urged Beijing to fix “imbalances” in its economy.

At a conference last month, PBoC vice-governor Zou Lan denied that China was trying to weaken the currency for trade gains. Instead, he said their policy goal is “to keep the renminbi stable and preserve its role as a store of value.”

China’s central planners seem open to letting the yuan rise slightly. It’s already moved past Rmb7 against a weaker US dollar, though it’s still falling against the euro.

Zhang Jun, chief economist at China Galaxy Securities, said that as China focuses on domestic growth and tech innovation, the yuan could rise further over time.

Han from Asia Group added, “Xi’s rhetoric won’t flip global foreign exchange markets today but it cements a long-term tilt investors are already sniffing out.”

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