In a momentous occasion for the Chinese energy market, the Chinese National Oil Company (CNOOC) completed the country’s first yuan-settled Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) transaction with French firm TotalEnergies on Wednesday. The development occurred as Beijing has pushed to settle its energy trades in the Chinese currency instead of the widely accepted dollar.
The trade was completed through the Shanghai Petroleum and Natural Gas Exchange. TotalEnergies transferred 65,000 tonnes of LNG imported from the UAE to CNOOC.
Over the last few years, China has been lobbying for more yuan-based international trade, which experts say is aimed at challenging the dollar’s dominance.
Over The Last 2 Weeks:
— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) March 29, 2023
1. Saudi Arabia considers accepting Chinese Yuan for oil sales
2. China and France complete first LNG trade using Yuan
3. Russia considers using Chinese Yuan as reserve currency
4. Saudi Arabia partners with China to build refinery for 83.7 billion…
For instance, President Xi Jinping called on Gulf countries to make energy transactions with China in yuan during his visit to Saudi Arabia last December. Riyadh has also contemplated pricing oil sales to China in yuan instead of the dollar. According to reports, Saudi Arabia is engaged in “active talks” with China to make the switch.
Moreover, during Xi’s recent visit to Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin embraced the yuan as Russia’s preferred global currency. “We are in favour of using the Chinese yuan for settlements between Russia and the countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America,” Putin said. “I am confident that these forms of settlement in yuan will develop between Russian partners and their counterparts in third countries.”