China is on a ‘strong currency’ mission to make the yuan a global reserve: Xi

Name: Why Beijing wants Hainan to be more than just ‘China’s Hawaii’
Uploaded: 2026-01-31T13:04:36.000Z
Duration: 4 min 42 s
Description: Why Beijing wants Hainan to be more than just ‘China’s Hawaii’

Xi Jinping says the goal of becoming an international powerhouse is a long-term one and will rest on core foundations

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Beijing has been pushing for the internationalisation of the yuan over the past decade or so, but its global footprint remains limited. Photo: Reuters

He Huifengin Guangdong

Published: 9:04pm, 31 Jan 2026Updated: 9:08pm, 31 Jan 2026

China needs to build a “strong currency” that can become widely used in international trade, investment and foreign exchange markets, and reach the status of a global reserve.

The mission for the yuan was from excerpts of a speech by President Xi Jinping and published online on Saturday by Qiushi, the ruling Communist Party’s leading theoretical journal.

Xi made the speech in 2024 to provincial and ministerial officials about building the country into a global financial powerhouse.

Parts of Xi’s speeches are often reproduced to highlight national goals and this call comes as uncertainty about global financial markets and questions about the value of the US dollar are on the rise.

Over the past year, the yuan has generally strengthened against the dollar, although international investment banks argue that the Chinese currency remains below its long-term fair value.

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Why Beijing wants Hainan to be more than just ‘China’s Hawaii’

The excerpts published on the weekend outlined what Xi described as the core attributes of a financial powerhouse: a strong economic foundation, world-leading economic and technological strength, and a widely used and credible currency.

He added that a financial powerhouse required a central bank that could implement effective monetary policy and macroprudential management, globally competitive financial institutions, and international financial centres that could attract international capital and exert influence over global pricing.

China is on a ‘strong currency’ mission to make the yuan a global reserve: Xi

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Xi Jinping says the goal of becoming an international powerhouse is a long-term one and will rest on core foundations

Xi Jinping says the goal of becoming an international powerhouse is a long-term one and will rest on core foundations