S. Korean won rises for 2nd day on currency swap deal

SEOUL, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) - The South Korean won rose sharply against the U.S. dollar on Thursday on expectations that a currency swap deal between Seoul and Washington would ease concerns about a dollar shortage facing local banks, dealers said.

A bullish run on the local stock market also helped the local currency gain
against the greenback while a narrowed current account deficit reduced dollar
demand, they said.
The won was trading at 1,357.00 as of 9:20 a.m., up 70 won from the previous
session's close.
Earlier in the day, the Bank of Korea said it will sign a currency swap agreement
of up to US$30 billion with the U.S. Fed, which will help stem the won's sharp
decline against the dollar.
BOK Gov. Lee Seong-tae said the swap deal will help the local financial market
and ease concerns about local banks' dollar shortage.
The local currency has lost more than 30 percent against the greenback so far
this year on continued sell-offs of local stocks by foreign investors and
concerns that local lenders are facing difficulties repaying short-term foreign
debts.
The country's current account shortfall narrowed to $1.22 billion in September,
compared with a deficit of $4.7 billion the previous month, according to the
central bank.
The country's key stock index, the KOSPI, rose 5.36 percent to 1,020.89 as of
9:20 a.m.
sam@yna.co.kr
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