1 Who sets China's exchange-rate policy?

China's Communist Party leadership, headed by President Xi Jinping, decides the overall direction of the nation's currency policy. The People's Bank of China, which answers to the leadership, manages the yuan on a daily basis and also provides an important role in advising leaders on what to do with the yuan. Because of its lack of independence, the Chinese central bank has to consult with other government agencies on currency issues and often finds itself pulled in different directions by competing interests.

2 What triggered China's...