伦敦银行家敦促英国央行支持人民币交易

The Bank of Englandis facing calls to support renminbi trading in London, as bankers meet this week to discuss how to boost the nascent market in China’s tightly controlled currency.

英国央行(Bank of England)正面临支持在伦敦进行人民币交易的呼声。本周银行家们开会讨论如何提振初生的人民币市场，中国对人民币实行严密管制。

Top investment banks in London have asked the BoE to provide a swap line with the People’s Bank of China that they say would shore up confidence among companies and investors who are nervous of trading the renminbi due to liquidity concerns.

伦敦顶级投资银行要求英国央行提供与中国央行(PBoC)的货币互换额度，他们表示，这将增强企业和投资者的信心，目前各方出于流动性担忧，对人民币交易感到紧张。

China’s currency remains tightly controlled and cannot be traded freely outside the country. Under a swap agreement, central banks agree to exchange each other’s currency and can then lend the money out to domestic banks to improve liquidity.

人民币仍受到严密管制，不能在中国境外自由交易。按照货币互换协议，央行同意相互兑换货币，然后将资金贷给国内银行，以提高流动性。

“At the moment it’s not that easy to do renminbi transactions, said one banker. “The liquidity isn’t that great and there’s not the confidence from clients.

“目前不容易做人民币交易，一名银行家表示。“流动性不那么好，客户没有信心。

Bankers and Treasury officials yesterday convened for a two-day conference under a City of London Corporation initiative to further growth in trading the renminbi.

银行家和英国财政部官员昨日汇聚一堂，举行为期两天的会议，这是伦敦金融城管理当局(City of London Corporation)推动人民币交易进一步增长的举措的一部分。

The banks are trying to convince clients to use the renminbi more in a battle to be at the forefront of what is expected to be one of the world’s most commonly traded currencies in the next decade.

相关银行正试图说服客户更多使用人民币。预计人民币将在未来10年里成为全球交易量最大的货币之一，各银行正力求置身于人民币交易的最前沿。

The working group was set up in April this year and held its first conference in May with a focus on institutional investors. This week the focus is on companies, some of whom have faced difficulties trying to pay Chinese suppliers in renminbi. George Osborne, UK chancellor, has said that the establishment of a renminbi hub in London is a key priority for the Treasury.

这个工作小组是在今年4月组建的，已在5月举行首次会议，当时聚焦于机构投资者。本周的焦点是企业，其中有些企业在向中国供应商支付人民币时遇到困难。英国财相乔治·奥斯本(George Osborne)已表示，在伦敦建立人民币交易中心，是英国财政部的一项重点任务。

“I personally believe it makes sense for the UK to have swap lines with China, said John McCormick, chief executive, markets and international banking for Asia Pacific at RBS, who attended the forum on Tuesday.

“我个人相信，英国与中国达成货币互换额度是合乎逻辑的，周二出席论坛的苏格兰皇家银行(RBS)亚太区市场及国际银行业务首席执行官麦高铭(John McCormick)表示。

“The political relationship is very warm and it would send another strong statement to the market that they’re both keen to develop the market jointly.

“目前政治关系非常友好，而此举将向市场发出又一个强大信号，说明两国都热衷于携手发展这个市常

Bankers told the Financial Times that the establishment of a swap line could also help restore confidence in the banks’ reliability in an environment where many are facing reputational damage over the Libor scandal.

银行家们对英国《金融时报》表示，在多家银行因伦敦银行间同业拆借利率(Libor)操纵丑闻而遭受名誉损害之际，建立货币互换额度还可能有助于恢复各方对银行可靠性的信心。

“A swap line would be an insurance policy. It’s more important now than it was a year ago, said one.

“货币互换额度将是一种保单。现在它的重要性高于一年前，其中一名银行家表示。

A BoE spokesperson said: “The Bank has been and remains fully engaged with the City of London initiative to develop London as a centre of renminbi trading and is in regular dialogue with the People’s Bank of China on a range of issues.

英国央行一名发言人表示：“本行一直并且仍然完全投入伦敦金融城的举措，目的是把伦敦发展为一个人民币交易中心，同时本行在一系列问题上与中国央行保持常态对话。

“Should it become appropriate to establish a swap line with the PBOC, the Bank would have no hesitation in doing so in the future.

“如果与中国央行建立货币互换额度的事变得适当，本行将毫不犹豫在未来这么做。

Last week, China Construction Bank became the first Chinese bank to issue a bond denominated in renminbi in London.

上周，中国建设银行(CCB)成为首家在伦敦发行人民币计价债券的中资银行。

But trade in the renminbi remains very limited, accounting for less than 1 per cent of the global currency market, compared with 86 per cent for the US dollar.

但人民币交易量仍很有限，在全球汇市所占比重不到1%，远低于美元的86%。