The value of China's currency declined slightly in Tuesday's trading after Monday's strong gains against the dollar.
Beijing recently allowed more flexibility in trading its currency, a move that its trading partners hope will increase the currency's value. China is thought to be limiting the rate at which the currency can change, so any gain in value will be gradual.
Some analysts said Tuesday's decline in value may have been engineered by China to show that the greater flexibility could allow the currency to fall as well as rise.
Critics have long accused China of intervening in foreign exchange markets to keep the value of the yuan artificially low to give Chinese-made goods a price advantage on world markets.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang Tuesday rebuffed the criticism, saying the international community should strengthen cooperation toward global economic recovery instead of accusing China of manipulating its currency.
Making currency trading more flexible may blunt such criticism ahead of the G-20 summit later this week.
Leaders of the world's 20 major economies, including Chinese President Hu Jintao, gather in Toronto, Canada June 26 for a two-day meeting.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
