The yuan ended firmer versus the dollar on Wednesday after the People's Bank of China set a slightly higher mid-point, tracking the dollar's pullback. Spot yuan finished at 6.4676, stronger than Tuesday's close of 6.4722. It has now appreciated 5.54 percent since it was depegged from the dollar in June 2010 and 1.89 percent so far this year.
Before trade began, the PBOC fixed the yuan's mid-point at 6.4728 against the dollar, stronger than the previous day's 6.4748. The central bank uses the fixing to guide the currency's trading on behalf of the government. Offshore, benchmark one-year dollar/yuan non-deliverable forwards (NDFs) were bid at 6.3940, down slightly from 6.4070 at the previous day's close. Their implied yuan appreciation in a year's time rose slightly to 1.23 percent from 1.03 percent.