Korean won hits fresh 1-year high to U.S. dollar

SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Yonhap) -- The South Korean currency rose to a one-year high against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday due to exporters' dollar sales and the central bank's upbeat forecast for the current account surplus, dealers said.

The local currency closed at 1,185.9 won to the greenback, up 10 won or 0.84
percent from the previous session and marking the highest level since Sept. 26,
2008.
"Exporters unloaded the greenback ahead of the fall harvest holiday and the end
of the month," said Jeon Seung-ji, a currency analyst at Samsung Futures Inc.
"The upbeat prediction by the Bank of Korea (BOK) for the yearly current account
surplus also added to the won's ascent."
The local currency climbed as high as 1,185.3 to the greenback at one point. It
has gained more than 32 percent versus the dollar since early March as global
financial turbulence has eased.
Earlier in the day, the BOK said the country's current account surplus more than
halved in August due to a drop in exports, but added that the country is likely
to post a bigger surplus for September and the full-year surplus will likely top
the bank's previous forecast of about $29 billion.
Analysts said the Korean unit may continue to experience upward pressure against
the dollar due to a mixture of factors, including the weakness of the dollar
globally and the current account surplus.
"The won will likely climb to the dollar and there's a possibility the won may
test the 1,160-range this year," said Jeon. "But the pace of the won's gain will
not be steep due to intervention cautions."
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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