Kenyan think tank hails yuan's inclusion into currency club

A Kenyan think tank on Friday hailed the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) decision to include the Chinese currency yuan into its basket of reserve currencies, saying the development will ease Sino-Africa trade.

Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis (KIPPRA) Acting Executive Director Dickson Khainga told Xinhua in Nairobi that the decision is an indication that the world is recognizing China's important role in global trade.

"Chinese yuan is now a key currency in the international arena because of the growing financial muscle of China," Khainga said.

The inclusion of the yuan, which marks another step in China's global economic emergence, came after the IMF on Dec. 1 evaluated the Asian nation's standing as an exporter and the yuan's role as a "freely usable" currency.

The Chinese currency is set to join the U.S. dollar, Euro, British Pound and Japanese Yen. Khainga said the development will benefit China's key trading partners including Africa.

"It will make it easier for countries with major transactions with China. For Africa it is a great development as China has made major inroads into Africa," he said.

"Transaction costs will reduce as African traders can use the Chinese yuan to conduct the trade," he said. Enditem