Exchange Rate Falls to 1,450 Won Range on Strong KOSPI... Lowest Since Middle East War

Weekly Closing at 1,455.1 Won... Down 7.7 Won

The won-dollar exchange rate fell to the 1,450 won range as foreign investors bought Korean stocks and the Japanese yen strengthened. This is the lowest level since the Middle East war on February 28.

On the 6th, when the KOSPI index surpassed the 7,000 mark intraday for the first time in history, the electronic board in the dealing room at Woori Bank headquarters in Jung-gu, Seoul displayed the domestic stock market indices and exchange rates. 2026.5.6 Photo by Jinhyung Kang

On May 6, in the Seoul foreign exchange market, the won-dollar exchange rate closed weekly trading at 1,455.1 won, down 7.7 won from the previous trading day.

The exchange rate opened at 1,465.8 won, up 3.0 won from the previous day, but reversed course and began to decline immediately after the market opened. In the afternoon, the decline widened, and by around 3:16 p.m., it had dropped to 1,451.5 won.

This was influenced by U.S. President Donald Trump mentioning the need for calm in negotiations with Iran overnight and stating that a ceasefire would be maintained, which led to a drop in international oil prices. As risk appetite recovered, foreign investors bought Korean stocks en masse, and the KOSPI closed at 7,384.56, up 6.45% from the previous session.

Foreign investors recorded a net purchase of stocks worth 3.5302 trillion won. In contrast, individuals and institutions posted net sales of 919.7 billion won and 2.2124 trillion won, respectively.

The dollar index, which measures the value of the dollar against the currencies of six major countries, fell 0.403 points from the previous day to 98.076.

The strength of the Japanese yen, which has a strong correlation with the won, was also cited as a factor in the exchange rate's decline. The yen-dollar exchange rate was recorded at 156.341 yen, down 1.445 yen. The won-yen cross rate stood at 930.64 won per 100 yen, down 2.30 won from the previous trading day.

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