# China economy: Central bank tries to slow weakening yuan vs US dollar

> The People's Bank of China cut the foreign exchange reserve requirement ratio by 1 percentage point to 8%, effective May 15. The yuan had fallen about 3% in April, and the central bank set its midpoint at its weakest level since April 2021.

- Date: 2022-04-27 · published 2022-04-27T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: policy · region China · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/4947-china-economy-central-bank-tries-to-slow-weakening-yuan-vs-us-dollar
- Commodities: [Chinese Yuan (CNY per USD)](https://feedsoft.ai/c/USDCNY.md)

## Why it matters

The cut lowers the foreign currency banks must hold, easing pressure on the yuan and supporting Chinese import capacity for commodities. It signals that Beijing is willing to slow currency weakness.

## Read by commodity

- USDCNY: bearish ▼

## Linked price moves

| Commodity | Date | Window | Change % | z-score | Why linked |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| USDCNY | 2022-04-28 | 1 | +1.0% | 4.2 | Reports the PBOC's weakest midpoint since April 2021 and a roughly 3% April fall, showing persistent depreciation pressure into the 28th despite the policy response. |

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| USDCNY | 2019-05-17 | [China's central bank won't let yuan weaken past 7 to the dollar-sources](https://feedsoft.ai/events/59283-china-s-central-bank-won-t-let-yuan-weaken-past-7-to-the-dollar-sources.md) | +0.4% | +0.6% |
| USDCNY | 2025-02-21 | [China’s central bank vows to enhance yuan amid looming risks from strong US dollar \| South China Morning Post](https://feedsoft.ai/events/26298-china-s-central-bank-vows-to-enhance-yuan-amid-looming-risks-from-strong-us.md) | +0.4% | -0.1% |
| USDCNY | 2022-09-06 | [Why China's central bank is shoring up the yuan](https://feedsoft.ai/events/12268-why-china-s-central-bank-is-shoring-up-the-yuan.md) | +0.4% | +3.1% |
| USDCNY | 2026-02-27 | [China encourages dollar buying to slow surging yuan \| Reuters](https://feedsoft.ai/events/7895-china-encourages-dollar-buying-to-slow-surging-yuan-reuters.md) | +0.7% | +1.0% |
| USDCNY | 2024-12-19 | [China's central bank offers strongest yuan support since July after dollar gains](https://feedsoft.ai/events/27167-china-s-central-bank-offers-strongest-yuan-support-since-july-after-dollar-gains.md) | +0.2% | +0.5% |

## Sources

- cnbc.com: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/27/china-economy-central-bank-tries-to-slow-weakening-yuan-vs-us-dollar.html

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.