The Korean won/U.S. dollar exchange rate started lower due to news of negotiations to extend a foreign exchange swap agreement between the National Pension Service and foreign exchange authorities.
On the morning of December 1st, in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won/dollar exchange rate was at 1,466.45 won as of 9:12 a.m., which is 4.15 won lower than the previous day’s closing rate at 3:30 p.m. The exchange rate began trading at 1,465.90 won, down by 3.60 won, and has been fluctuating around this level.
The decline in the exchange rate is attributed to news of measures to stabilize foreign exchange supply and demand, alongside heightened caution about government intervention. It is reported that foreign exchange authorities held an emergency meeting over the weekend to discuss stabilization measures.
The previous day, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance announced plans to address foreign exchange supply and demand issues, including detailed negotiations to extend the foreign exchange swap agreement between foreign exchange authorities and the National Pension Service.
External factors also supported the decline in the exchange rate. Over the weekend, the possibility of an end to the Russia-Ukraine war was mentioned, which led to a recovery in global risk appetite and a weaker dollar, bolstering the strength of the won. Senior officials from the U.S. and Ukraine resumed ceasefire talks in Florida on November 30th.
Amid expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut in December, the dollar index, which shows the value of the dollar against six major currencies, remained in the low 99 range. At the same time, the index was at 99.43, down 0.02% from the previous day.
The won/yen cross rate was at 941.23 won per 100 yen as of 9:12 a.m., up 0.74 won from the previous day’s afternoon reference rate of 940.49 won.
The yen/dollar exchange rate fell by 0.43 yen to 155.75 yen per dollar from the previous day.