The writer is chief economist for the Asia-Pacific at Natixis and senior research fellow at the Bruegel Institute

It has been an extraordinary year for the renminbi. On the one hand, it has clearly disappointed investors, who were expecting the currency to appreciate as the Chinese economy moved out of zero-Covid policies at the end of 2022.

Instead, after a short respite, it depreciated about 8.5 per cent against the US currency from January lows until it found a floor at about 7.30 renminbi per dollar. The trend reflected the stubborn weakness of the Chinese economy and the large capital outflows. More recently the renminbi has appreciated but that is in line with other currencies as the US Federal Reserve shifted to a less hawkish tone on interest rates.