Won-Dollar Exchange Rate Rises to 1326.9 Won... New Yearly High Reached (Update)

On the 19th, the won-dollar exchange rate started at 1,326.0 won, up 5.3 won from the previous trading day (1,320.7 won), at the Hana Bank dealing room in Jung-gu, Seoul. On the same day, the KOSPI opened at 2,510.72, up 2.67 points (0.11%) from the previous trading day. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] The won-dollar exchange rate hit a new high for the first time in a month.

On the 19th, the exchange rate opened at 1,326.0 won, up 5.3 won from the previous day's closing price in the Seoul foreign exchange market, and rose to 1,326.9 won as of 9:16 a.m., setting a new high. The previous intraday high was 1,326.7 won, recorded on the 15th of last month, marking a new high after about a month.

The minutes of the July Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting of the U.S. central bank, the Federal Reserve (Fed), released the day before, reaffirmed the commitment to monetary tightening. Comments from some officials supporting a giant step (0.75 percentage point hike) have driven the exchange rate higher.

The market widely expects the Fed to raise the benchmark interest rate by 0.50 percentage points next month. However, uncertainty is increasing due to mixed remarks from some officials, such as James Bullard, President of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, who said the rate should be raised by 0.75 percentage points at the next meeting.

An official from the foreign exchange market said, "With the release of the FOMC minutes, concerns about monetary tightening are affecting the exchange rate," adding, "The hawkish remarks from Fed officials have increased uncertainty about the interest rate hike path, which is the cause of the exchange rate rise."

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