There's still a bit of this going on with other countries, such as the UK-Qatar deal which clearly mentions inward investment as a motivator: https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/uk-qatar-deepen-defence-ties...

(not a "petro pound" though!)

I think the main importance of the "Petroyuan" is simply sanctions evasion. The US claims jurisdiction over all dollar transactions, so countries need to use something else.

> the main importance of the "Petroyuan" is simply sanctions evasion. The US claims jurisdiction over all dollar transactions, so countries need to use something else

Correct. And I'm not saying tracking in what currency different commodities are settled isn't important. But it's as a signal of financial and trade flows. Not an end in itself. It was an end in itself in the 1970s, with the petrodollar and–far-more important to America–petrodollar recycling.

Dollar hegemony is built on American consumption, first, and capital markets, second. The power of the renmimbi rests in Beijing's production power.