U.S. tells China important to let yuan move in both directions

(Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew told Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei on Friday that it was important that China let its yuan currency move up as well as down, and avoid any move to lower its value to gain a competitive edge in global trade, a U.S. official said.

"Secretary Lew ... noted that it was important for China to signal that it will allow market pressures to drive the (yuan) up as well as down, and that China should allow its exchange rate to reflect underlying fundamentals, avoid persistent exchange rate misalignments, and refrain from competitive devaluation," the official said in a statement outlining a conversation the two officials had on the sidelines of a Group of 20 finance ministers meeting in Ankara.

(Reporting by Timothy Ahmann in Washington; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)