Zhou Xiaochuan, the governor of China's central bank, has proposed the creation of a new, super-sovereign reserve currency to help reform the global monetary system.

Zhou said a desirable goal for the international monetary system was "an international reserve currency that is disconnected from individual nations, able to remain stable in the long run." He said such a currency would "remove the inherent deficiencies caused by using credit-based national currencies."

Special drawing rights, or SDRs, issued by the International Monetary Fund could be such a currency, according to a signed article posted Monday on the website of the People's Bank of China, the central bank.

The SDR is an international reserve asset created by the Fund in 1969.

Zhou's remarks came ahead of the Group of 20 summit, which is scheduled to start in London on April 2. World leaders and major multilateral bodies like the IMF are expected to discuss reform of the international monetary and financial system, in light of the global financial crisis.

China's proposal is similar to that of Russia, which last week also called for the introduction of a super-national reserve currency.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Beijing.

(XHTV March 26, 2009)