The People's Bank of China on Monday fixed the yuan's mid-point against the dollar sharply lower, its second biggest single-day fall on record, in the latest sign China intends to let its currency move in a wider range.

The central bank set the yuan's mid-point at 6.3282 to the dollar, 209 pips or 0.33 percent weaker than last Friday's fixing, which also pushed the Chinese currency down against the dollar in early spot trade.

The only other day it posted a bigger fall since China established its foreign exchange market in 1994 was on August 12, 2010. The yuan dropped 247 pips, or 0.36 percent, on that day.

In spot trade, the yuan fell to 6.3271 against the dollar in early trade from Friday's close of 6.3107.

PBOC governor Zhou Xiaochuan said last week that conditions were now ripe for the yuan's exchange rate to float more widely.

(Reporting by Lu Jianxin and Jason Subler; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)

China Fall