Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva says he believes a group of five nations collectively known as BRICS should create its own common currency to compete on the global stage.

After attending the G7 meeting in Hiroshima, President Lula hosted a press conference touting the benefits of a common currency that does does not depend on the US dollar, reports Nikkei.

According to the report, Lula says Brazil is boosting economic ties with China and “hopes to create a common BRICS currency”.

Those views stand in contrast to the goals of the economically elite G7 nations, which are focused on “de-resking” without “decoupling” from China.

President Lula’s statements come about a month after he expressed initial support for a BRICS currency.

“Why can’t an institution like the BRICS bank have a currency to finance trade relations between Brazil and China, between Brazil and all the other BRICS countries? Who decided that the dollar was the [trade] currency after the end of gold parity?”

BRICS leaders have touted various views on a potential common currency, depending on the country.

Late last month, a top Russian lawmaker said that BRICS is already in the process of creating an alternative currency that would bypass the US dollar.

But South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor recently said the launch of a global BRICS currency is “a matter we must discuss and discuss properly”.

The Daily Hodl