SCO summit agrees to adopt common currency

The leaders of SCO countries agreed to take Russia's proposal on using their national currencies in mutual settlements and introducing a common currency for the group.

The common currency would be similar to the European currency unit and the monetary union currency in 2013 of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries that include Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The common currency would be similar to the European currency unit and to the coming monetary union currency in 2013 of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries that include Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, also as expected, told the SCO summit that the Shanghai group member states should increase the share of their national currencies in mutual settlements to reduce dependence on the dollar and improve the health of the global financial system.

The current set of reserve currencies and the main reserve currency - the U.S. dollar - have failed to function as they should, Medvedev said.

He added that the Russian ruble could hopefully become a reserve currency in the foreseeable future.

The summit suggests that the dollar dominance as the world's prime reserve currency isn't on the road to expansion. Obviously the developing countries are clearly observing the unprecedented rise of U.S. debt that issued in U.S. dollars.

The SCO was set up as a security group, but has increasingly encompassed economic and energy projects. The alliance is seen as a counterbalance to U.S. interests in energy-rich Central Asia.