Above is a weekly chart of the yuan ETF over a three year period. In the 2H09 and most of 2010 we see a relative level of stability, save for the quick rally in 3Q10. However, starting in 2011, continuing into 2012 and on through this year we see a continual and gradual increase in the yuan's overall value. While the overall rise is only about 6%, the overall trend is very clear: it's moving up. And with it, we see a decrease in Chinese growth as shown in this chart:
In 2Q10 the annual rate of GDP growth printed at 11.9% . But since then the overall rate of growth has been decreasing, finally falling to a 7.4%-7.9% clip over the last few quarters.
In reality, there are a lot of reasons for China's slowdown. But massive exports were central to China's overall growth, exports which are now more expensive thanks to the yuan's appreciation.
