Despite strained political relations and continuing controversy over some key issues, the U.S. is extending its use of the renminbi as a settlement currency. The value of yuan payments increased in the U.S., placing the country third in the world for yuan clearing activities, preceded by Singapore and the UK. Thus, most U.S. companies pay for imports from China in yuan. According to Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT), the number of transactions in renminbi is steadily growing. The number of payments in renminbi rose to 2.4%, up from 0.7% last year with the yuan payments value increased by 327% between April 2013 and April 2014. Experts have different opinions about the matter, but the majority view was reflected in the SWIFT report.
"The rising use of yuan payments in the U.S. is a significant milestone that further promotes cross-border use of the currency. Data suggests that the U.S. is increasingly using the yuan to support its corporations that want to reach more suppliers in China's mainland. This is good news for the internationalization of the yuan as a world payments currency," Michael Moon, SWIFT's head of payments in Asia Pacific, said in the report. It is noteworthy that previously Taiwan was ranked as the third biggest market in the world for yuan payments.
