China Scores Another Currency Win Over The U.S. Dollar

AsiaChina Scores Another Currency Win Over The U.S. DollarByTim Treadgold,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Tim Treadgold is an Australian journalist specializing in miningFollow AuthorApr 28, 2026, 10:50pm EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.Unloading iron ore at the port of Qingdao, China. (Photo by Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images)NurPhoto via Getty ImagesChina’s drive to de-dollarize its trade with the rest of the world by replacing the U.S. dollar with its currency, the renminbi, has spread from into a commodity long dominated by the dollar, iron ore.The win for China came after a bruising seven-month dispute with the world’s biggest mining company, Australia-based BHP.Swapping Dollars For RenminbiUntil last month all iron ore sold by BHP to China was priced in U.S. dollars but in future a small amount will be sold in renminbi.The breakthrough is very much the thin edge of a wedge which China has been trying to drive into its commodity purchasing arrangements with other countries for decades.Displacing the dollar with the renminbi can also be seen in oil trading and in a surge of borrowing in the Chinese currency by international banks which was reported last week to have reached record levels.According to London’s Financial Times newspaper U.S. banks, led by Goldman Sachs, have been attracted to China’s offshore debt market by low interest rates.The shift is also seen as another example of investors and companies limiting their exposure to the uncertainties of doing business with the U.S.MORE FOR YOUWhat happened in iron ore is a small example of the shift underway in commodity markets which have traditionally traded most products in U.S. dollars despite China growing to be the world’s leading commodity consuming country.What’s happened with iron ore can be traced to the creation by the Chinese Government of a new commodities...