What lies behind Governor Zhou’s SDR proposal?

Chinese culture is familiar with the notion of saying one thing to signal another. But what did Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People’s Bank of China, the central bank, mean to signal when he suggested a “super-national” currency for the world? His idea revolves around using the International Monetary Fund’s Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) as a settlement currency for international trade transactions. He also recommends widening the range of currencies in the SDR basket – presumably (though he didn’t say it) to include the renminbi.

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• News In Review

  March 19th – April 1st

• Consumer China

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  Consumer Survey: Computers

  Consumer Survey: What do you plan to buy?

  Consumer Survey: E-commerce

  Consumer Survey: Travel

  Consumer Survey: Paid-for education

• The Big Call

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• The Best of Chinese Commentators

  Is it time to buy China?

• In Depth

  China Going Global

• Macro View

  China's consumer bulls

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