Won-Dollar Exchange Rate Nears 1,370, Hits 13-Month Low

Won-Yen Cross Rate Falls into the 850-Won Range

The won-dollar exchange rate has fallen to the low 1,370 won range, marking its lowest level in 13 months. The won-yen cross rate also dropped below 860 won during intraday trading.

On August 28, in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won was trading at 1,372.5 won per US dollar as of 3:30 p.m., down 8.4 won from the same time the previous day. This is the lowest level in about 13 months since July 24, 2025, when the rate hit 1,367.20 won.

Photo by Yonhap News Agency, dealing room at the Seoul Headquarters of Hana Bank in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 28th.

The exchange rate began the session at 1,380.50 won. After declining to the mid-1,370 won level in the morning, the drop accelerated after 3 p.m. During intraday trading, it fell to its lowest level since July 25, 2025.

This appreciation of the won is believed to have been influenced by expectations regarding US monetary policy. The market is closely watching the remarks that Kevin Warsh, Chair of the US Federal Reserve (Fed), is scheduled to make later tonight at the Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium.

The dollar index, which measures the value of the US dollar against the currencies of six major countries, stood at 99.160 on this day. Although it was up 0.035 from the previous day, it remained below the 100 mark.

Domestic interest rates also contributed to the won's strength. On the previous day, the Monetary Policy Board of the Bank of Korea raised the base interest rate by 0.25 percentage points, from 2.75% per annum to 3.00% per annum.

Despite foreigners' net selling of Korean stocks, the exchange rate continued to fall. On this day, foreigners were net sellers of stocks worth 1.7563 trillion won on the Korea Exchange.

The won-yen exchange rate is also on a downward trend. As of 3:30 p.m., the won-yen cross rate was 860.61 won per 100 yen, down 5.97 won from the previous day. This is the lowest level since July 8, 2024.

During intraday trading, it dropped further to 859.99 won, breaking below the 860 won threshold. This is the lowest level in about two years and one month since it reached 858.015 won on July 9, 2024. At the same time, the yen-dollar exchange rate stood at 159.45 yen per dollar.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.