China to launch yuan-denominated gold fix this year

[SHANGHAI] The Shanghai Gold Exchange will launch a yuan-denominated gold fix by the end of the year, a bourse official said on Thursday, in a move aimed at giving China more influence over the pricing of the precious metal.

"We will be introducing a renminbi-denominated fix at the right moment, we are hoping to introduce by the end of the year," Shen Gang, vice president of the Shanghai Gold Exchange said at the LBMA Bullion Market Forum in Shanghai.

The yuan fix will be complementary to the current global benchmark, the century-old London gold fix, she said. "The aim is to provide a more diversified benchmark pricing to the industry," Shen said.

Mr Shen's comments were the first official confirmation of SGE's plans for the fix. Reuters had reported in February citing sources that China was planning to launch the yuan gold fix through state-run SGE, the world's biggest physical bullion exchange.

REUTERS