From Reuters:
China on Wednesday took a baby step on the road to making the yuan an international currency when it promised to allow its use in trade between a few provinces and neighbouring states.
The State Council, or cabinet, said the yuan could be used for the settlement of trade between the factory-rich Pearl River and Yangtze River Deltas and the Chinese territories of Hong Kong and Macau.
It also said that members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations would be permitted to use yuan in their trade with China’s southeastern provinces of Guangxi and Yunnan.