(Yicai Global) Aug. 31 -- The central parity rate of the yuan (CNY) against the US dollar (USD) hit a new high for the fourth straight day as it declined 92 basis points before the opening of interbank market on Thursday. It also represents the strongest point the yuan reached against the dollar since June 2016.

The China Foreign Exchange Trade System (CFETS), the interbank trading and foreign exchange division of China's central bank, the People's Bank of China (PBOC), set the yuan central parity rate at 6.6010 against the dollar on Thursday, compared with the previous official close of 6.5927.

The central parity rate of the yuan against almost all major foreign currencies also significantly edged up. The yuan gained against the euro and the Japanese yen (100 yen), rising 618 points and 468 points to 7.8525 and 5.9780, respectively. It also strengthened against the British pound and the Australian dollar by 139 points and 371 points at 8.5277 and 5.2207, respectively.

Overnight, the US dollar index came back from a two-and-a-half-year low and hit 92.9 following the release of some eagerly-expected economic performance data that topped economists' forecasts, raising investor expectations for solid third-quarter economic growth.

The ADP Research Institute's employment data for August indicated better-than-expected job prospects and employment rates in the US, while the US second-quarter GDP growth was revised up from 2.7 percent to 3.0 percent per annum, the quickest pace in more than two years.