China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), attracted some attention this week after it was revealed that it has suspended using the counter-cyclical factor in calculating the daily fixing for the yuan. Having been introduced in May 2017 to counter speculative bets in forex markets, the surprise move is seen as a reflection by the PBOC that downside risks to the yuan have subsided substantially. However, although capital outflows no longer pose a major threat to the economy, many analysts remain concerned about the possibility of a bigger-than-expected slowdown in growth in 2018. The yuan closed down by ... (full story)