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BEIJING, Jan 31 (Reuters) - China will keep its yuan
currency basically stable, which will be vital for the country's
economic and financial stability, state media on Tuesday quoted
Premier Li Keqiang as saying.
China will maintain its economic operations within a
reasonable range, Li was quoted as saying during a visit on
Monday to the People's Bank of China and the State
Administration of Foreign exchange.
The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday lifted China's
growth outlook sharply higher for 2023, to 5.2% from 4.4% in the
October forecast after harsh COVID-19 curbs in 2022 slashed
China's growth rate to 3.0% - a pace below the global average
for the first time in more than 40 years.
China has kept its foreign exchange reserves above $3
trillion yuan despite external shocks in recent years,
reflecting the international confidence in China, Li said.
"The stability of exchange rate is related to the
overall stability of the economy and finance," he said.
The yuan has rebounded this month after
falling 7.9% against the dollar in 2022, its biggest annual drop
since 1994.
China's
foreign exchange reserves
- the world's largest - rose $11 billion to $3.128 trillion
in December.
Maintaining financial stability would be a difficult task,
Li said.
(Reporting by Beijing newsroom and Kevin Yao, editing by Ed
Osmond)
