HONG KONG: A pilot project involving yuan-denominated settlement of trade deals would start from Hong Kong, the central bank's assistant governor Guo Qingping said in Beijing.

Guo said cross-border trading activity would benefit from the move. He said the project was likely to be extended to other cities if the pilot project succeeds.

Zhou Xiaochuan, governor of the People's Bank of China or the central bank, had told reporters last week that details of the yuan-settlement process would be released soon without elaborating.