1st LD-Writethru: Chinese yuan strengthens to 6.3521 against USD Friday

BEIJING, May 4 (Xinhua) -- The central parity rate of the yuan, strengthened 211 basis points to 6.3521 against the U.S. dollar Friday, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System (CFETS).

The rise follows a weakening of 62 basis points to 6.3732 on Thursday, the weakest level since late January.

The dollar held steady against a basket of currencies on Friday, having retreated from a four-month high on profit-taking. Investors remain cautious ahead of Friday's employment report for April.

The dollar has erased all its 2018 losses over the past few weeks on expectations the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates while other central banks, including the European Central Bank, will not.

The yuan central parity rate strengthened 3.9 percent against the dollar in the first quarter and 3.2 percent in January alone.

In China's spot foreign exchange market, the yuan is allowed to rise or fall by 2 percent from the central parity rate each trading day.

The central parity rate of the yuan against the dollar is based on a weighted average of prices offered by market makers before the opening of the interbank market each business day. Enditem