China's Yuan Hits Its Strongest Level Against the Dollar Since 2022 and Heads for a Fourth Monthly Gain

China's yuan rose to its strongest level against the U.S. dollar in more than four years on Friday, October 30, 2026, and was on course for a fourth straight monthly gain, as exporters converted dollar earnings into the local currency and China's central bank set a firmer daily reference rate.

The onshore spot yuan opened at 6.6600 per dollar and was trading at 6.659 as of 0240 GMT, its strongest since June 6, 2022, Reuters reported in a story published by Business Recorder. The currency kept firming later in the global day: around noon ET, the dollar was quoted at about 6.6435 yuan, down roughly 0.26% from the previous close, according to Yahoo Finance currency data. The offshore yuan, which trades outside mainland China, was at about 6.6532 per dollar.

A firmer official fixing

Before the market opened, the People's Bank of China set the yuan's central parity rate at 6.7138 per dollar, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System figures reported by Xinhua. Reuters said that was the strongest midpoint since February 2023 and 590 pips weaker than a Reuters estimate. The onshore yuan is allowed to trade a maximum of 2% on either side of the midpoint each day.

Analysts at OCBC said in a note cited by Reuters that the steady progression in the fixing suggests little inclination from policymakers to reverse the appreciation trend, although the pace may moderate. "Resilient US growth and still-elevated inflation could lend support to USD near term, but this need not derail yuan's appreciation trajectory," the analysts said.

Exporters and trade flows

Traders told Reuters that exporters continued to convert dollar holdings into yuan. Because a stronger yuan reduces the value of exporters' dollar balances, many have been selling dollars and increasing hedging, which adds further upward pressure on the currency, the report said.

Those flows are supported by strong shipments abroad. China's exports rose 36.3% from a year earlier to $447.18 billion in September, the fastest annual growth in seven months, driven mainly by global demand for electronics and semiconductors, Trading Economics reported. It said the offshore yuan had reached its strongest level since April 2022.

Weekly and monthly performance

Reuters said the onshore yuan was up 0.2% against the dollar so far this week and 0.7% for the month, and was on course for a fifth consecutive weekly advance. Trading Economics put the currency's October gain at around 0.8%. Yahoo Finance data show the dollar ended September at about 6.7045 yuan.

Against a broader basket, the yuan's trade-weighted value as measured by the CFETS index rose to 103.77 based on Friday's midpoint, the highest since July 15, 2022, according to Reuters calculations.

The dollar elsewhere

The U.S. dollar was slightly weaker against most major currencies at midday. The ICE U.S. Dollar Index stood at about 101.95, down about 0.1% from Thursday, after trading as low as 101.54 earlier in the session. Sterling rose about 0.2% to $1.3398, and the dollar slipped about 0.4% against the South Korean won to 1,333.78. The euro was down about 0.1% at $1.1167 after briefly trading above $1.12, and the dollar was little changed against the Swiss franc at 0.8229, according to Yahoo Finance data around 12:02 p.m. ET.

Continuum Economics said that technology-stock weakness was tending to weigh on U.S. Treasury yields and the dollar, while supporting the Swiss franc and the yen. The 10-year Treasury yield was near 4.95%, down from 4.99% on Thursday.

In Europe, data released Friday showed eurozone gross domestic product grew 0.4% in the third quarter from the previous quarter, above the 0.2% market expectation, Continuum Economics reported. Flash inflation readings were mostly firmer: France's EU-harmonized consumer price index rose to 3.8% from 3.4%, and Italy's rose to 5.6% from 4.2%, while Spain's flash reading eased to 4.9% from 5%.

Exchange rates cited are intraday quotes and will continue to move through the global trading session.