China's central bank rolls out pilot program for offshore RMB forex trading

The People's Bank of China (PBOC) on Wednesday announced a pilot program to allow offshore RMB forex trading in the country's Shanghai Free Trade Zone, a step further opening up China's financial market.

The PBOC, China's central bank, rolled out the program along with a series of other financial reform and opening-up measures at the annual Lujiazui Forum in Shanghai, an important platform for China's financial authorities to release policy tools and international dialog on the country's financial market.

In addition to the pilot program, the PBOC will also work to improve the short-term interest rate regulation mechanism, create a repurchase tool for overseas central banks, aiming to better facilitate the high-quality economic development of China's financial market.

Other authorities also unveiled their new policy tools at the forum.

The National Financial Regulatory Administration will focus on tackling and preventing risks, handling risks of small and medium-sized financial institutions in an effective and orderly manner, and playing a supportive and cooperative role in resolving risks related to real estate and local government debts. The administration will also step up efforts to eliminate regulatory gaps and blind spots, and ensure full coverage with no exceptions.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission will expand the scope of the fifth set of criteria for the STAR Market to cover the field of artificial intelligence, orderly promote the deepening of the reform of the ChiNext board, deepen the reform of re-financing, launch the pilot programs for active exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and real estate investment trusts (REITs), and accelerate the research and promotion of the pilot program for RMB foreign exchange futures.

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange will comprehensively reform the cross-border policies for foreign direct investment, further simplify the foreign exchange management of direct foreign investment and foreign debts, and issue a new batch of investment quotas for qualified domestic institutions to better promote the facilitation of cross-border financing and investment.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Wednesday that the Strait of Hormuz will not return to the pre-war conditions, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported

Iran has the right to exercise sovereignty over the strategic waterway, and of course the country will charge ships for services, the speaker said.

On Monday, Iran's Foreign Ministry said that the country would charge maritime service fees, rather than levy tolls, on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz under a framework agreement with the United States, according to media reports.

Three Iranian tankers carrying 5 million barrels of oil have sailed through the strait, according to Iran's state-run TV and other media outlets on Wednesday.