China’s Yuan Exchange Rate Against Dollar Hits New Low Since 2008

BEIJING (Sputnik) – The People's Bank of China on Thursday lowered the yuan exchange rate by 0.28 percent to 6.9670 per one dollar, bringing the rate to the lowest point since the 2008 global financial crisis for the second time in a week amid Beijing’s trade war with Washington.

On Wednesday, the yuan exchange rate was set at 6.9646, while it was brought to the first minimum in 10 years, sinking to 6.9574 on Tuesday.

The previous yuan exchange rate minimum was registered on May 21, 2008, when it amounted to 6.96 yuan per one dollar.

Since then, the Chinese central bank lowered the national currency’s exchange rate in August 2015 and three times in 2016, prompting experts’ speculations that it was deliberately devaluing the yuan to boost exports, something denied by Beijing.

READ MORE: Is US-China Trade War Becoming 'Nuclear'?

China and the United States are currently engaged in a major trade spat which followed the announcement of introduction of steel and aluminum import duties by US President Donald Trump in March. The tensions further heightened in late May when Washington announced that $50 billion worth of Chinese goods would be subject to 25 percent tariffs. Since then, the two countries have exchanged several rounds of trade duties against each other.