According to the latest data from the Qingdao Central Branch of the People’s Bank of China, in the first half of 2023, Qingdao’s cross-border RMB amounted to RMB264.88bln, increasing by 130.4% year on year; RMB accounted for 39.7% of the total cross-border receipts and payments in the form of RMB and other currencies, up 20.2 percentage points over the same period last year. With both the amount and the proportion setting record highs, RMB maintains its position as the second mostly used currency in cross-border settlements.

In the first half of 2023, the cross-border RMB settlements between Qingdao and the SCO member states hit RMB62.34bln, increasing by 13.8 times year on year; the cross-border RMB settlements in trade of commodities in Qingdao Port such as crude oil, rubber and iron ore saw a year-on-year rise of 7.8 times; the cross-border RMB settlements between Qingdao and the ASEAN or the countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative saw a year-on-year increase of 48% and 221.8%, respectively.

As of the end of June 2023, Qingdao boasts of 384 outlets of 47 banking institutions where cross-border RMB settlement services are available, benefiting more than 15,000 foreign related enterprises and covering around 150 overseas countries and regions.  (Fu Jun)