LUANDA - Angola's central bank has added China's yuan to the ​list of ⁠currencies local banks can use to meet ‌foreign-currency reserve requirements, alongside the U.S. dollar, euro and South ​African rand.

The Bank of Angola made the ​change in a ​directive dated July 2 that was published on its website on Thursday.

Mandatory reserves ⁠are funds national banks have to hold with the central bank for financial stability and to manage liquidity in the banking system.

The ​yuan ‌has become an ⁠increasingly important ⁠currency in Africa due to China's position as the ​continent's largest trading partner and key ‌source of infrastructure financing.

⁠The dollar remains by far the world's dominant reserve and trade currency. However, efforts to reduce reliance on the U.S. currency have gathered momentum across much of the emerging world in recent years, driven by concerns over exposure to U.S. sanctions, transaction costs and shifts ‌in the global balance of economic power.

Angola ⁠is a major crude oil ​supplier to China, which has provided the Southern African country with billions of dollars of loans for ​infrastructure ‌investments.