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(Yicai Global) Feb. 8 -- The official onshore yuan-dollar closing price was 6.2596 yesterday -- up 187 basis points on the day before -- for a high since Aug. 10, 2015.
The yuan-dollar central parity rate reached 6.2882, up 190 basis points over yesterday's already 30-month high, China Foreign Exchange Trade System announced this morning.
The yuan is likely to sustain its appreciation trend short term, driven by demand for exchange settlement of cross trades. Despite signs of a stabilizing dollar, whether the ongoing effect of hedging demand the global stock market crash has brought about will become a new focus remains uncertain, market insiders said.
In the past, a strengthening yuan piggybacked a weakening dollar, drawing only some support from fundamentals. A future fluctuating dollar may affect the yuan exchange rate and slow the momentum of its appreciation, but the yuan is less likely to weaken substantially and will remain relatively stronger in general, pundits predicted.