On November 30, 2015, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) decided to include the RMB into the currency basket of the Special Drawing Right (SDR) as a fifth currency along with the U.S. dollar, the euro, the Japanese yen, and the British pound. The weight of the RMB in the SDR basket is 10.92%, whereas the weights of the U.S. dollar, the euro, the Japanese yen and the British pound are 41.73%, 30.93%, 8.33% and 8.09% respectively. The new basket will become effective on October 1, 2016.
The People’s Bank of China welcomes the decision, which is an acknowledgement of China's economic development, reform and opening up. We appreciate the hard work of the IMF management and staff in the SDR review, and the support of Fund members. The inclusion of the RMB in the SDR basket will increase the representativeness and attractiveness of the SDR, and help improve the current international monetary system, which will benefit both China and the rest of the world. It also means that the international community expects China to play a bigger role in the international economic and financial system. Going forward, China will continue to deepen and accelerate economic reforms and financial opening up, and contribute to promoting world economic growth, safeguarding financial stability and improving global economic governance.
Attachment: Q&A on SDR Review
