SHANGHAI, April 18 (Reuters) - China's yuan eased against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, after a weaker daily fixing and as the greenback held ground following an overnight retreat amid escalating tensions over North Korea. The People's Bank of China set the midpoint rate at 6.8849 per dollar versus the previous day's fix of 6.8785. The spot market opened at 6.8888 per dollar and was at 6.8894 at midday, 59 pips weaker than the previous late session close and 0.07 percent below the midpoint. The yuan is allowed to trade with a 2 percent range above or below the official fixing. "Today's market resembled yesterday's, which was stable with no big swings," said a trader from a Chinese bank in Shanghai, citing a steady greenback and weaker midpoint. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence warned North Korea on Monday that recent American military strikes in Syria and Afghanistan showed President Donald Trump's resolve should not be questioned, but Pyongyang vowed to continue missile and nuclear tests. The global dollar index shed 0.3 percent overnight before steadying at 100.29 at midday. The trader expected limited impact on the yuan from rising tensions over North Korea - despite U.S. President Donald Trump linking the two. Trump on Sunday defended his reversal on whether to call China a "currency manipulator", saying on Twitter that China was helping with the North Korean problem. "Why would I call China a currency manipulator when they are working with us on the North Korean problem? We will see what happens!" Trump said on Twitter. Analysts said China did not meet the criteria to merit the manipulator tag from the U.S. Treasury Department in its semi-annual review. The Thomson Reuters/HKEX Global CNH index, which tracks the offshore yuan against a basket of currencies on a daily basis, stood at 94.16, firmer than the previous day's 94.15. The offshore yuan was trading 0.07 percent away from the onshore spot at 6.8845 per dollar. Offshore one-year non-deliverable forwards contracts (NDFs), considered the best available proxy for forward-looking market expectations of the yuan's value, traded at 7.0585, -2.46 percent away from the midpoint. One-year NDFs are settled against the midpoint, not the spot rate. The yuan market at 4:04 GMT: ONSHORE SPOT: Item Current Previous Change PBOC midpoint 6.8849 6.8785 -0.09% Spot yuan 6.8894 6.8835 -0.09% Divergence from 0.07% midpoint* Spot change YTD 0.83% Spot change since 2005 20.13% revaluation Key indexes: Item Current Previous Change Thomson 94.16 94.15 0.0 Reuters/HKEX CNH index Dollar index 100.29 100.29 0.0 *Divergence of the dollar/yuan exchange rate. Negative number indicates that spot yuan is trading stronger than the midpoint. The People's Bank of China (PBOC) allows the exchange rate to rise or fall 2 percent from official midpoint rate it sets each morning. OFFSHORE CNH MARKET Instrument Current Difference from onshore Offshore spot yuan 6.8845 0.07% * Offshore 7.0585 -2.46% non-deliverable forwards ** *Premium for offshore spot over onshore **Figure reflects difference from PBOC's official midpoint, since non-deliverable forwards are settled against the midpoint. . (Reporting by Jackie Cai and John Ruwitch; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)
SHANGHAI, April 18 (Reuters) - China's yuan eased against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, after a weaker daily fixing and as the greenback held ground...
SHANGHAI April 18 Reuters China's yuan eased against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday after a weaker daily fixing and as the greenback held ground following an overnight retreat amid escalating tensions over North Korea The People's Bank of China set the midpoint rate at 6.8849 per dollar versus the previous day's fix of 6.8785 The spot market opened at 6.8888 per dollar and was at 6.8894 at midday 59 pips weaker than the previous late session close and 0.07 percent below the midpoint The yuan is allowed to trade with a 2 percent range above or below the official fixing Today's market resembled yesterday's which was stable with no big swings said a trader from a Chinese bank in Shanghai citing a steady greenback and weaker midpoint U.S. Vice President Mike Pence warned North Korea on Monday that recent American military strikes in Syria and Afghanistan showed President Donald Trump's resolve should not be questioned but Pyongyang vowed to continue missile and nuclear tests The global dollar index shed 0.3 percent overnight before steadying at 100.29 at midday The trader expected limited impact on the yuan from rising tensions over North Korea despite U.S. President Donald Trump linking the two Trump on Sunday defended his reversal on whether to call China a currency manipulator saying on Twitter that China was helping with the North Korean problem Why would I call China a currency manipulator when they are working with us on the North Korean problem We will see what happens Trump said on Twitter Analysts said China did not meet the criteria to merit the manipulator tag from the U.S. Treasury Department in its semi-annual review The Thomson Reuters / HKEX Global CNH index which tracks the offshore yuan against a basket of currencies on a daily basis stood at 94.16 firmer than the previous day's 94.15 The offshore yuan was trading 0.07 percent away from the onshore spot at 6.8845 per dollar Offshore one-year non-deliverable forwards contracts NDFs considered the best available proxy for forward-looking market expectations of the yuan's value traded at 7.0585 -2.46 percent away from the midpoint One-year NDFs are settled against the midpoint not the spot rate The yuan market at 4:04 GMT ONSHORE SPOT Item Current Previous Change PBOC midpoint 6.8849 6.8785 -0.09% Spot yuan 6.8894 6.8835 -0.09% Divergence from 0.07% midpoint * Spot change YTD 0.83% Spot change since 2005 20.13% revaluation Key indexes Item Current Previous Change Thomson 94.16 94.15 0.0 Reuters / HKEX CNH index Dollar index 100.29 100.29 0.0 * Divergence of the dollar/yuan exchange rate Negative number indicates that spot yuan is trading stronger than the midpoint The People's Bank of China PBOC allows the exchange rate to rise or fall 2 percent from official midpoint rate it sets each morning OFFSHORE CNH MARKET Instrument Current Difference from onshore Offshore spot yuan 6.8845 0.07% * Offshore 7.0585 -2.46% non-deliverable forwards * Premium for offshore spot over onshore Figure reflects difference from PBOC's official midpoint since non-deliverable forwards are settled against the midpoint Reporting by Jackie Cai and John Ruwitch Editing by Jacqueline Wong