S. Korea's inter-bank FX turnover up 2 pct in Q3

SEOUL, Oct. 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korean banks' daily foreign exchange turnover
rose for the third straight quarter in the July-September period on decreased
currency volatility, the central bank said Monday.

The daily foreign exchange trading volume among banks averaged US$21.91 billion
in the third quarter, up 2 percent from three months earlier, according to the
Bank of Korea (BOK).
"The daily FX turnover is returning to levels seen before the collapse of Lehman
Brothers last year," the central bank said in a statement. In August last year,
the daily FX transaction stood at $23.5 billion.
Daily transactions of foreign exchange spots dipped 7.8 percent on-quarter to
$5.85 billion while FX swaps gained 4.7 percent to $10.98 billion, it added.
Hit by the U.S.-sparked global financial meltdown, the Korean currency tumbled
25.7 percent against the U.S. dollar last year alone, becoming one of the world's
worst-performing currencies.
The average daily fluctuation of the won-dollar exchange rate has moderated since
the fourth quarter of last year, when the won's volatility hit an over 10-year
high, the BOK said. The daily volatility of the local currency reached 8.4 won in
the third quarter, compared with 17.1 won in the preceding quarter.
The Korean currency gained 8.1 percent against the U.S. dollar in the third
quarter compared with the second quarter.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr
(END)