SHANGHAI—The yuan fell to its lowest level against the dollar in nearly eight years Tuesday, continuing a recent drop that has accelerated since Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election.

The value of one dollar rose as high as 6.8660 yuan in China’s tightly controlled domestic market during the Asian trading morning, its highest point since Dec. 9, 2008, during the depths of the global financial crisis. The yuan’s fall came after China’s central bank set its daily reference rate for the currency at 6.8495 Tuesday, up 0.3% from the day before, marking the highest so-called yuan “fix” since Dec. 8, 2008. The yuan is allowed to trade 2% either side of the fix in mainland Chinese markets.

The Chinese currency ended Tuesday’s trading in Asia at 6.8530 against the dollar, down from 6.8409 Monday.

The People’s Bank of China has allowed the yuan to weaken for the last eight consecutive trading days, with the pace of depreciation picking up since Friday when the dollar intensified its global surge following Mr. Trump’s election victory.

Mr. Trump was often critical of China’s currency policy during the presidential election campaign, saying he would brand the country a “currency manipulator” when he took office, among other measures designed to combat China’s alleged unfair trade practices.