CHINA WEAKENS YUAN RATE FOR SIXTH STRAIGHT DAY

SHANGHAI: China weakened the yuan’s reference rate against the dollar for the sixth straight trading day yesterday, the longest sequence in nine months, after expectations of a US interest rate hike put upward pressure on the dollar. A series of positive readings on the US economy, and increasingly upbeat statements from Fed chief Janet Yellen, have fanned speculation the central bank will lift borrowing costs by the end of the year. This has sent the dollar rallying against most of its peers, including the yuan. Yesterday the People’s Bank of China set the unit’s central rate against the greenback at 6.7258, a new six-year low after it passed the 6.7 mark on Monday. – AFP