The Chinese yuan strengthened to a record high against the US dollar Tuesday to reach 6.5891 per dollar.

The central parity rate of the Chinese currency, also known as the renminbi (RMB), was five basis points lower than last Friday's 6.5896, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trading System.

China's central bank announced in June 2010 it would further reform the yuan exchange rate formation mechanism to improve its flexibility.

On China's foreign exchange spot market, the yuan can rise or fall 0.5 percent from the central parity rate each trading day.

The central parity rate of the RMB against the US dollar is based on a weighted average of enquired prices from all market makers before the opening of the market each business day.

(Xinhua News Agency January 18, 2011)