Yuan Jumps After Report on Saudis Weighing Its Use in Oil Deals

An oil drilling rig stands on one of the Causeway islands in the Manifa offshore oilfield, operated by Saudi Aramco, in Manifa, Saudi Arabia. Photo: Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) — The Chinese yuan reversed earlier declines following a report by Dow Jones that Saudi Arabia is in active talks with Beijing to price some of its oil sales to China in the currency.

The talks with China over yuan-priced oil contracts have been off and on for six years but have accelerated this year as the Saudis have grown increasingly unhappy with decades-old U.S. security commitments to defend the kingdom, Dow Jones reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The offshore yuan erased a loss of as much as 0.3%, and traded slightly stronger at 6.39 per dollar.