UK and US markets suffer worst day of the year on currency war concerns

Renminbi devalued

Beth Brearley
clock • 1 min read

UK and US stocks suffered their worst day of the year so far yesterday (5 August) after China devalued its currency, prompting concerns the trade war is spilling over into the currency markets.

The renminbi fell to its weakest level since the 2008 Global Financial Crisis on Monday as the prospect of a trade deal between China and the US faded, which had a knock-on effect on global markets and elicited an angry response from US President Donald Trump, who railed against China, accusing it of manipulating its currency.  The renminbi is allowed to trade 2% on either side of a daily midpoint set by the People's Bank of China.  The onshore exchange rate fell past RMB7 per US dollar on Monday for the first time since May 2008, falling 1.3% to finish the Asian trading day at RMB7.0...

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