The yuan moved in a narrow fluctuation last week with traders expecting the currency to increase in a slow but steady pace in the foreseeable future.

The yuan ended at 6.9890 against the United States dollar last Friday, slightly down from the central parity rate of 6.9820 last Monday.

The People's Bank of China said in its quarterly monetary report that the central bank would use multiple means including the yuan's exchange rate as tools to tame inflation.

The yuan has slowed down in the past six weeks from a fast appreciation in the first quarter. The yuan has been moving around the 7.00 mark against the greenback since April 10 when it cracked the psychologically important 7 mark.

The yuan soared 4.2 percent in the first quarter ?? its fastest quarterly rise since it was depegged from the US dollar in July 2005.

(Shanghai Daily May 19, 2008)