Daniel Tenengauzer, a managing director at RBC Capital Markets, argues that China may be trying to keep its currency in line with its top trading partners – Japan and Europe.
“With the euro going up after the ECB yesterday, it makes sense that the bank would raise the fix,” Tenengauzer told the WSJ.
The appreciating yuan currency also helped support gains in Chinese equities markets. On Friday, the iShares China Large-Cap ETF (NYSEArca: FXI), the largest China-related ETF that tracks Chinese companies listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange, gained 3.4% and the SPDR S&P China ETF (NYSEArca: GXC) rose 3.3%.
China A-shares ETFs that track mainland Chinese stocks traded in Shanghai and Shenzhen also rallied Friday, with the Deutsche X-trackers Harvest CSI 300 China A-Shares ETF (NYSEArca: ASHR) up 2.3%.
WisdomTree Dreyfus Chinese Yuan Fund