China seeks to replace U.S. Dollar

The Chinese central bank has reiterated the need to replace the dollar with a new currency for international trade. The 2008 report of the Bank of the Chinese people, issued yesterday, suggests the launch of "super-sovereign" a currency. The report also demands more rules for nations that emit currency in support of the global financial system. "An international monetary system dominated by a single currency - the report says - increases the concentration of risks and the spread of the crisis."

In March, the Governor of Central Bank of China, Zhou Xiaochuan, had already expressed the idea of replacing the dollar with SDR (Special drawing right), a measure introduced 40 years ago by the International Monetary Fund (see Goodbye dollar? G20 summit to discuss a single world currency). The SDR is based on a unit account of currencies including the U.S. dollar, the Euro, Japanese Yen and British Pound. China seems to want to broaden the account to include the Yuan.

According to the report, the world should not only adopt the SDR, but entrust the IMF with the administration of a portion of foreign currency reserves of its members. In a veiled criticism of the United States, the report states that it is difficult to balance national needs with international requirements.