FX.co ★ Offshore Yuan Steady Despite Lower GDP Target

The offshore yuan held steady around 6.89 per dollar on Thursday, as a stronger daily fixing helped offset cautious sentiment in the wake of Beijing’s newly lowered economic growth target. China set a GDP growth goal of about 4.5% to 5% for 2026, its most modest target since 1991. The move signals policymakers’ increasing readiness to accept slower growth as they pivot toward more sustainable economic drivers and reduce dependence on debt-fueled property and infrastructure investment. The reduced target also highlights a growing acknowledgment in Beijing that the development model that underpinned China’s rapid expansion for more than four decades is now confronting intensifying structural headwinds. At the same time, the PBoC set the daily midpoint at 6.9007 per dollar—around 0.07% stronger than the previous fixing and the firmest level in 34 months. Market participants interpreted the stronger midpoint as an effort by authorities to stabilize the currency amid broad dollar strength and elevated geopolitical tensions.