China's currency rose 80 basis points to 6.8353 per U.S. dollar on Wednesday, as the yuan maintained its momentum for a seventh consecutive trading day.

That rate is the central parity rate, which is set daily.

The unexpectedly large interest rate cut announced by the U.S. Federal Reserve Board overnight drove down the dollar on international currency markets, analysts said.

The yuan's rise marked a turnaround from a period of depreciation at the beginning of the month, when the currency fell by the daily limit against the U.S. dollar for four straight trading days.

Chou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China (PBOC, the central bank) said in Hong Kong on Tuesday that the shifting yuan rate mainly reflected China's overall international balance.

"The central bank might interfere to some extent, but that influence is not parallel with the market," Zhou said.

The trade surplus in November hit a record high for this year at US$40 billion, up 52 percent from last November. The surplus was US$35.24 billion in October and US$29.3 billion in September, according to the General Administration of Customs.

(Xinhua News Agency December 17, 2008)