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A graphic by a Chinese media outlet showing the continued appreciation of the Chinese yuan, suggesting that the situation is becoming increasingly significant. / Meiri Jingji Xinwen.

China’s renminbi (yuan), aspiring to transform into a reserve currency like the dollar and euro, has recently been soaring in value. It has reached its highest level in three years and three months, earning the nickname “the advancing yuan.” For now, this commanding momentum seems certain to continue.

According to reports from outlets such as National Business Daily (每日經濟新聞), the yuan was once derided as “beggar’s money” at the end of the last century, trading at around 9 yuan per dollar on Beijing’s black markets despite the official rate of 8.2 yuan.

But as China’s economy exploded in the new century, its status began to change. Following the 2008 financial crisis, when the U.S. economy faltered, the yuan strengthened from over 8 per dollar to 7, then to 6. What was once “beggar’s money” became a “noble currency.”

Early last year, however, the yuan weakened again, hovering around 7 per dollar for over a year. Some even predicted it could fall to 7.5. Yet those forecasts proved wrong. Since the beginning of this year, the yuan rebounded, re‑entering the 6‑yuan range. On June 11 it reached about 6.77, the highest since February 15, 2023, when it stood at 6.8183.

Market sentiment suggests the yuan could rise further, possibly to 6.5. At the end of the last century, one yuan was worth about 90 won; now it is around 225 won. Some say it is the Korean won, not the yuan, that has become “beggar’s money.”

The yuan’s surge to near‑dollar status has clear causes: the ongoing Middle East war has boosted its value, and China’s strong exports have produced large trade surpluses.

Yet for China, a strong yuan is not entirely positive. It brings harmful side effects—export‑dependent firms struggle, and cheaper imports risk fueling deflation, a chronic problem for China’s economy.

Even so, authorities are unlikely to intervene to weaken the currency. Pan Gongsheng, governor of the People’s Bank of China, emphasized at a press conference during the National People’s Congress on March 6 that the yuan’s recent strength reflects China’s stable recovery, a weaker dollar index, and seasonal increases in corporate foreign‑currency settlements. He stressed that depreciation is unnecessary.

From “beggar’s money” to “noble currency,” the yuan’s commanding rise is truly remarkable.

                                                                                                           Hong Soon‑do