On the first trading day of 2026, the RMB spot exchange rate against the US dollar continued its appreciation trend. Today, the RMB spot exchange rate against the US dollar rose to a high of 6.977 during the day, once again hitting a new high since mid-May 2023. At 4:30 PM, the intraday closing price of the RMB spot exchange rate against the US dollar was 6.9806, an increase of 84 basis points from the previous trading day, reaching a new high since May 17, 2023. Wen Bin, chief economist of China Minsheng Bank, predicts that the RMB may still have room for appreciation in January, supported by seasonal settlement demand. However, the RMB-USD central parity rate has deviated from the spot exchange rate closing price in a depreciating direction, which may indicate some pro-cyclical behavior in the foreign exchange market recently. "Overall, under the policy tone of the regulatory authorities adhering to the principle of maintaining the RMB exchange rate basically stable at a reasonable and balanced level and preventing the risk of exchange rate overshooting, the RMB exchange rate may still be relatively strong in January, but it is not expected to appreciate significantly. It is likely to fluctuate in both directions within the 6.9-7 range for most of the time," Wen Bin pointed out. (The Paper)