Bolivia's president expressed openness to the use of the
Chinese yuan for international trade during a press conference
on Wednesday, citing similar moves by Argentina and Brazil to
tap the Asian currency for transactions with China.
International trade transactions tend to be priced in U.S.
dollars, especially for major commodity markets like energy and
grains, going back decades.
"The two largest economies in the region are already
trading in yuan in agreements with China, and that is going to
be the trend in the region," Arce said, adding the South
American country could not afford to stay on the sidelines.
The Argentine government
announced last month it will start to pay for Chinese imports in yuan rather than U.S. dollars, in large part to safeguard the central bank's dwindling dollar reserves needed to pay down debt as well as to finance imports.
Earlier in the year, China and Brazil moved to reduce the dominance of the greenback by
signing a deal to set up yuan clearing arrangements that can facilitate bilateral trade.
"In Latin America, we have always had a great influence
from the United States... but today many countries have more
foreign trade with China. Things are changing," said Arce.
(Reporting by Daniel Ramos; Writing by Valentine Hilaire;
Editing by David Alire Garcia)
