Onshore Yuan Weakens as China Loosens Grip on CurrencyMarket Talk

The onshore yuan weakens against the U.S. dollar in the Asian session as China loosens its grip on the Chinese currency. The PBOC today set the yuan fixing at 7.2038 against the dollar, breaching 7.2000 for the first time since September 2023. The "PBOC seems to be allowing more room for the CNY to react to the (U.S.) tariff but the preference for some semblance of stability is clear," Maybank analysts say in a FX Research & Strategy report. "The gap of the actual fix to estimate actually widened to 1259 pips, still underscoring the strong desire for control," the analysts add. USD/CNY is up 0.3% at 7.3308. (ronnie.harui@wsj.com)