WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The inclusion of the Chinese currency renminbi, also known as yuan, into the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF)Special Drawing Right (SDR) currency basket acknowledges Beijing’s reform progress, the IMF said in a release on Friday.

“Effective October 1, the IMF is adding the Chinese renminbi (RMB) to the basket of currencies that make up the Special Drawing Right, or SDR,” the release stated. “Move recognizes and reinforces China’s continuing reform progress.” The IMF said the inclusion of the yuan is an important milestone in integrating the Chinese economy into the global financial system.

“Consolidating and further strengthening the RMB internationalization process will help strengthen the Chinese economy, and therefore the global economy,” IMF’s Strategy Department Director Siddharth Tiwari said in the release.

China had been striving to make the renminbi an international reserve currency since the 2000s.

In late 2015, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde announced that the yuan had received reserve currency status.

The SDR basket also includes the US dollar, Japanese yen, British pound and the euro.

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