Won–dollar exchange rate falls to the 1,360 won range for the first time in 13 months

[Financial News] On the 31st, the won–dollar exchange rate closed the week at 1,368.6 won, down 3.9 won from the previous trading day. It was the first time the rate had fallen into the 1,360 won range in about 13 months, since July 24 last year, when it stood at 1,367.2 won.
Although foreign investors have been leaving the domestic stock market, the direction of the exchange rate changed as exporters rushed to sell dollars. That followed expectations for won conversion that emerged after SK hynix's American Depositary Receipt (ADR) listing in the U.S.
The move also appears to have been influenced by the Bank of Korea (BOK)'s Monetary Policy Board raising the benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage point for the second consecutive meeting in July, after doing so again this month. That narrowed the policy rate gap between South Korea and the United States to 0.75 percentage point.
Hyun Song Shin, Governor of the Bank of Korea, said at a press briefing for correspondents on the sidelines of the Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on the 28th local time, "I think the won has developed some degree of immunity."
In a revised economic outlook released on the 27th, the BOK also projected that this year's current account surplus would reach a record $450 billion. That is 1.8 times the May forecast of $250 billion. With the surplus already at $191 billion in the first half, it would need to reach $259 billion in the second half. If realized, it would be 3.6 times last year's previous record of $123.1 billion.

[email protected] Kim Tae-il Reporter