The Chinese currency, the yuan, strengthened to a record high against the U.S. dollar for a second consecutive day Friday, at 6.6227 per U.S. dollar on the last trading day of the year after 11 consecutive days of gains.

The central parity rate of the currency, also known as the renminbi (RMB), was set two basis points lower than Thursday's 6.6229, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trading system.

China's central bank announced on June 19 it would further reform the formation mechanism of the yuan exchange rate to improve its flexibility.

Based on Friday's central parity, the Chinese currency has appreciated 3 percent against the U.S. dollar since the day before the central bank's pledge.

On China's foreign exchange spot market, the yuan can rise or fall 0.5 percent from the central parity rate each trading day.

The central parity rate of the RMB against the U.S. dollar is based on a weighted average of enquired prices from all market makers before the opening of the market each business day.