(LEAD) S. Korean won surges against U.S. dollar on foreign buying in local stocks

Lead

The South Korean won strengthened to a nine-month high against the U.S. dollar on Friday, buoyed by a combination of suspected market-smoothing operations by foreign exchange authorities and heavy net purchases of local stocks by foreign investors, according to reports from Yonhap News Agency.

The currency was quoted at 1,418 won per dollar as of around 6 a.m., marking its strongest level since Oct. 20 last year, Yonhap reported. It had advanced to as high as 1,419 won per dollar Thursday night (Seoul time) but later pared gains to trade at the 1,430-won level as of 9:37 a.m. In a separate report, Yonhap said the won was quoted at 1,424 won per dollar at 3:30 p.m., up 13.4 won from the previous day.

Coverage Comparison

Yonhap News Agency provided two reports on the won's move. The first, published early Friday, focused on the currency's strengthening and the suspected role of foreign exchange authorities. The second, updated later in the day, added details on foreign investors' stock purchases and a government official's comments on coordination with Japan.

Both reports noted that the won's appreciation was in line with a gain in the Japanese currency. At one point in overnight New York trading, the yen rose to about 158 per dollar, hitting its strongest level in more than two years, according to Yonhap.

While the first report offered only analyst speculation about possible intervention, the second report included a statement from Moon Ji-sung, deputy finance minister for international affairs, who told Yonhap that South Korea and Japan have maintained close coordination but declined to confirm whether the two nations jointly conducted an intervention in the open market.

Key Claims

• The won strengthened to a nine-month high against the U.S. dollar, quoted at 1,418 won per dollar as of around 6 a.m. Friday.
• The won had advanced to as high as 1,419 won per dollar Thursday night but later traded at the 1,430-won level as of 9:37 a.m. In the afternoon, it was quoted at 1,424 won per dollar at 3:30 p.m., up 13.4 won from the previous day.
• The yen rose to about 158 per dollar in overnight New York trading, its strongest level in more than two years.
• Lee Min-hyuk, an analyst at KB Kookmin Bank, said the correlation between the won and yen raised speculation that both South Korean and Japanese foreign exchange authorities might have intervened in the markets. "The overnight strength of the won and the yen could suggest the authorities in South Korea and Japan may have intervened together," Lee said.
• Foreigners bought a net 7 trillion won (US$4.9 billion) worth of local stocks during the latest trading session, with the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index skyrocketing 17.91 percent to close at 6,595.45.
• Moon Ji-sung, deputy finance minister for international affairs, told Yonhap that South Korea and Japan have maintained close coordination but declined to confirm whether the two nations jointly conducted an intervention.

Perspectives

• Analyst (Lee Min-hyuk): The won and yen's simultaneous strength suggests possible joint intervention by South Korean and Japanese authorities.
• Government (Moon Ji-sung): South Korea and Japan have maintained close coordination, but he did not confirm any joint intervention in the open market.

Temporal Context

Both reports were published July 31, reflecting intraday movements. The first report cited the won's strongest level since Oct. 20 last year, while the second provided an updated afternoon quote. The photo accompanying the reports is dated July 31, 2026.