China and Japan will start direct trading of their currencies in both markets on Friday, suggesting China is looking to speed up efforts to raise its currency's profile overseas.

Direct trading between the Chinese yuan and Japanese yen, without using the U.S. dollar as an intermediate currency, is part of a broad agreement reached last year to reinforce financial ties between the world's second- and third-largest economies, and will help China's push to reduce its currency's links to the dollar.

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