USD-KRW slips below 1,300 amid talk of US treasury secretary visit to Seoul

[Photo by Park Hyung-ki]

The Korean won which has breached 1,300 versus the U.S. dollar for the first time in 13 years on Thursday slightly strengthened Friday amid report that U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen would be visiting Seoul mid-July,

It would be the former chairwoman of the Federal Reserve’s first visit to Seoul as the treasury secretary under Joe Biden administration to meet with her new counterpart Choo Kyung-ho.

The dollar slipped 6.30 won to 1,297.20 won Friday morning from previous closing of 1,301.8 won. The dollar-Korean won exchange rate previously went beyond 1,300 threshold only during the crisis period – 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, 2001-2002 dot.com bubble, and 2006-2009 global financial crisis.

Market experts have been calling for an emergency buffer such as currency-swap agreement to prop up the local won whose sharply weakening can worsen foreign flight from capital markets, trade deficit, and inflation.

The two governments have yet to confirm her visit.

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