THE yuan is accounting for a growing share of international payments. This mirrors a steady progress in the yuan's internationalization, which helps diversify payment options, and gives the market more scope to adjust against the risk of dollar fluctuations, at a time when investors continue to firm up bets that US Federal Reserve (Fed) rate cuts are coming soon.

Figures released on Thursday by international payments platform Swift showed the yuan's share of global payments climbed to 4.74 percent in July, which means it remained the fourth-most active currency in payments for a ninth consecutive month, according to media reports. The yuan's global share has almost doubled from November 2022 when it made up 2.37 percent of international payments.