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Efforts by countries to replace the US dollar in international trade will reach a new high when BRICS nations discuss the feasibility of introducing a common currency at a summit in South Africa later this year, Chinese experts said on Sunday, noting that the move can be a fresh blow against the dollar’s hegemony.

The BRICS group of nations will discuss the issue, which is likely to be on the agenda of a meeting of the nations’ heads of state in Johannesburg on August 22, Bloomberg reported recently, citing the foreign minister of South Africa.

The BRICS group of nations – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – accounts for one-third of global economic output, and their combined output is larger than the Group of Seven economies by some measures.

Experts said the desire for a currency that offers better accessibility and fairer treatment in international trade is the main objective for BRICS nations.

They pointed out that the US dollar, used as a tool for the US to exercise international hegemony, has caused great uncertainty for the recovery of the world economy.

Zhou Yu, director of the Research Center of International Finance at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday that the discussion is likely to be a probing effort by BRICS countries for a long-term goal of a currency unit.

“Despite the daunting difficulties such an effort faces, it is not entirely impossible for these nations to have such a currency unit,” Zhou said.

. – Global Times