Forex reserve managers more optimistic about renminbi: survey

BEIJING - Foreign exchange reserve managers have become more optimistic about the renminbi and predict bigger global influence of the Chinese currency in the coming years, a private survey showed.

Surveyed institutions upgraded their forecast of the share of the renminbi in global forex reserves in 2020 to 8.5 percent from the 6.9-percent prediction made three years ago, due to the currency's inclusion into the IMF Special Drawing Right basket and China's steady capital market opening up.

Seventy-four percent of respondents selected the renminbi when asked which currency has become more attractive than a year ago, the highest among all global currencies and followed by the US dollar and euro.

The survey, sponsored by HSBC, covers 79 central banks worldwide that manage a total of $5.5 trillion of forex reserves, 54 percent of the world's total.

Christian Deseglise, Global Head of Central Banks at HSBC, said the survey confirmed the continued momentum of the renminbi as the 8.5-percent ratio represents a huge increase from the 1.2-percent reading published by the IMF at the end of 2017.

International investors will have a bigger demand for renminbi encouraged by the A shares' inclusion into MSCI index, more cross-border use of the renminbi, and the future inclusion of Chinese bonds into global indices, said Helen Wong, HSBC's chief executive for China.

Bucking the general optimism, some respondents believe more time is needed for the currency to be fully recognized as a main reserve currency.