China sets yuan midpoint at weakest since Oct 2019

China's central bank on Thursday set its official yuan midpoint at the lowest in nearly five months to reflect sharp gains in the greenback in global markets overnight. The People's Bank of China (PBOC) set the midpoint rate at 7.0522 per dollar prior to the market open, 194 pips, or 0.28%, weaker than the previous fix of 7.0328, and the weakest since Oct. 31, 2019.

The dollar soared across the board, hitting multi-year highs against several major currencies, as companies and investors worried by the coronavirus outbreak rushed to the perceived safety of the U.S. currency.