# China foreign exchange market regulation and stability

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/china-foreign-exchange-market-regulation-and-stability
> Updated: 2026-08-19T19:35:00.000Z. Sources: 20. Developments: 2.

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) announced plans to expand institutional opening in China’s foreign-exchange sector through the second half of 2024. These reforms aim to optimize current-account management, support e-commerce and service-trade settlements, and lower hedging costs for small and medium-sized enterprises. To maintain stability, the regulator also pledged to strengthen monitoring of cross-border capital flows and use technologies like artificial intelligence to crack down on illegal financial activities.

By July 2026, the foreign exchange market remained stable despite global geopolitical uncertainties and financial market volatility. SAFE reported that bank foreign exchange settlements reached $266.3 billion in July, while sales totaled $248 billion, resulting in an $18.3 billion surplus. For the first seven months of 2026, cumulative settlements totaled $1,831.6 billion against $1,542.2 billion in sales, yielding a surplus of $289.4 billion.

The balance of supply and demand was supported by expanding cross-border transactions. Non-bank institutional inflows and payments totaled $1.7 trillion in July, representing a 20% year-on-year increase, with a net capital inflow of $59.8 billion. Additionally, Chinese demand for gold remained steady in July. While the jewelry sector faced challenges due to high prices, physical gold investment demand remained broadly unchanged, and ETF assets under management in China rose 3% to ¥250 billion ($37 billion), driven by geopolitical uncertainty and accumulation by the People's Bank of China.

## Claims

- Bank foreign exchange settlements in July reached $266.3 billion. (corroborated by 4 sources)
- Bank foreign exchange sales in July totaled $248 billion. (corroborated by 4 sources)
- The July foreign exchange surplus was $18.3 billion. (corroborated by 4 sources)
- In the first seven months of 2026, cumulative settlements totaled $1,831.6 billion. (corroborated by 4 sources)
- The cumulative surplus for the first seven months of 2026 was $289.4 billion. (corroborated by 4 sources)
- The Chinese currency market remained stable in July despite geopolitical uncertainties and international market fluctuations. (corroborated by 4 sources)

## Timeline

### 2026-08-19: China foreign exchange market remains stable in July

China's foreign exchange market showed stability in July with an $18.3 billion surplus. Gold demand also remained steady despite high prices and jewelry sector challenges.

20 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/china-foreign-exchange-market-remains-stable-in-july

### 2026-08-02: China's Foreign Exchange Regulator Announces Market Opening and Tightened Capital Oversight

China's SAFE will expand forex market opening, support trade reforms and SMEs, and tighten oversight of cross‑border capital flows with new AI‑driven enforcement.

3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/chinas-foreign-exchange-regulator-announces-market-opening-and-tightened-capital-oversight

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Cite as: China foreign exchange market regulation and stability. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/china-foreign-exchange-market-regulation-and-stability