China and India may soon find another turf to compete for: their currencies' clout.

It's an idea that has some economists at the Reserve Bank of India thinking. A recent study from the central bank says that the growing economic prowess of China and India makes their respective currencies -- the yuan and the rupee -- contenders for greater international use. But the researchers are worried the rupee could be left behind.

The RBI economists expect the yuan to grow in importance as a regional currency in Asia, eventually -- one far-off day -- becoming a global reserve currency. For India, the researchers draw a clear conclusion: India needs to 'increase the role of the rupee in the [Asian] region to catch up with the growing influence of the Chinese renminbi.'

True, India's currency, unlike China's, floats almost freely and isn't pegged to the dollar. But the rupee can't officially be used for international transactions other than with Nepal and Bhutan, while foreigners face limits on their holdings of both assets and liabilities denominated in rupees.

One worry about further liberalization of the rupee is that this will increase its already high vulnerability to rapid capital withdrawal at times of economic stress. Even with restrictions in place, the currency was whipsawed in 2008 and 2009, dropping 23% before rising 13% against the dollar in just 26 months, as investors rushed out and in. A drop in the currency would be far worse for India, which runs trade deficits, than for China, which has a large trade surplus. Sharp appreciation of either currency, meanwhile, creates problems for exporters.

These short-term risks may be the price India has to pay to ensure that its clout in the region keeps up with the size of its economy in the long run. Eventually, currency dominance will depend on how much faith investors put in the two economies, the stability of their markets and their politics. It's clear that some at the RBI are worried about India sleepwalking into a world -- or at least an Asia -- where the yuan wins that race.

Harsh Joshi / Andrew Peaple

• compete [kəm´pi:t] v.比赛，竞争，对抗 (初中英语单词)
• international [,intə´næʃənəl] a.国际的，世界的 (初中英语单词)
• conclusion [kən´klu:ʒən] n.结束；结论；推论 (初中英语单词)
• unlike [,ʌn´laik] a.不同的 prep.不象... (初中英语单词)
• freely [´fri:li] ad.自由地；慷慨地 (初中英语单词)
• stress [stres] n.强调；压力 vt.强调 (初中英语单词)
• meanwhile [´mi:n´wail] n.&ad.其间；同时 (初中英语单词)
• economy [i´kɔnəmi] n.经济；机制；组织 (初中英语单词)
• politics [´pɔlitiks] n.政治(学)；政治活动 (初中英语单词)
• currency [´kʌrənsi] n.通货；通用；货币 (高中英语单词)
• surplus [´sə:pləs] n.&a.剩余(的) (高中英语单词)
• appreciation [ə,pri:ʃi´eiʃən] n.评价；感激 (高中英语单词)
• prowess [´prauis] n.勇猛；技术；本领 (英语四级单词)
• respective [ri´spektiv] a.各自的，各个的 (英语四级单词)
• eventually [i´ventʃuəli] ad.最后，终于 (英语四级单词)
• far-off [´fɑ:rɔ:f] a.远方的，遥远的 (英语四级单词)
• officially [ə´fiʃəli] ad.以职员身份；正式 (英语四级单词)
• stability [stə´biliti] n.稳定；巩固；坚定 (英语四级单词)