China and Brazil have agreed a currency swap deal in a bid to safeguard against any global financial crisis and strengthen their trade ties.
It will allow their respective central banks to exchange local currencies worth up to 60bn reais or 190bn yuan ($30bn; £19bn).
The amount can be used to shore up reserves in times of crisis, or towards boosting bilateral trade.
China is Brazil’s biggest trading partner.
“As international credit remains scarce, we will have enough credit for our transactions,” Brazil’s Finance Minister, Guido Mantega, said.
A global yuan
The agreement is the latest in a series of similar deals signed by China with its trading partners.
In March this year, it signed a swap deal with Australia worth up to A$30bn ($31bn; £20bn) to promote bi-lateral trade and investment.
It has also inked currency pacts with Hong Kong and Japan.
Analysts said that Beijing has been trying to push for trade to be settled in yuan, rather than in US dollars, as part of its plans to seek a more global role for its currency.
“The motivation is to be less reliant on the US dollar,” Sean Callow, chief currency strategist at Westpac, told the BBC.
“We will see firms in the two countries settle their accounts in local currencies,” he added.
Mr Callow added that with an increasing number of economies signing such agreements with China, its plans for a more global role for the yuan had received a major boost.
“It is a big positive for China on that account.”
