China's yuan weakened against the dollar Friday on the back of corporate demand for dollars. That came, too, as sales of US dollars are not strong enough to offset the softening yuan's rate. The People's Bank of China set the midpoint rate at 6.9463 per dollar, weaker than the previous fix of 6.9435. For the week, the yuan closed flat against the dollar.

Analysts don't believe the yuan would breach the seven-per-dollar level by end of the year, but expect downward pressure to remain next year. Meanwhile, China's forex regulator said Thursday that the country's October reduction in its U.S. Treasury holdings was not a strategic cut, but a small, tactical adjustment due to market conditions.