The Bank of China, the third largest state-owned Chinese bank, has begun to trade in Chinese yuan to U.S. customers, a symbolic step toward the internationalization of the renminbi, according to a Wall Street Journal report Tuesday.

Buying and selling in the yuan had been largely confined within China until July 2010, when China opened up limited trading of the yuan in Hong Kong through some foreign banks, such as HSBC, prompting a big surge in the yuan trade.

As China further eases the yuan trade, more and more Chinese companies will expand into the U.S.

China's business press carried the story above on Wednesday. China.org.cn has not checked the stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.