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Futures and Commodity Market News |
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Mon May 12, 2008 |
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Breaking financial news 24/7 courtesy of TradingCharts.com Inc. / TFC Commodity Charts |
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SEOUL, May 09, 2008 (Asia Pulse Data Source via COMTEX) -- The South Korean currency tumbled to a 30-month low against the U.S. dollar Thursday as demand for the greenback increased amid surging energy prices and falling stock prices, dealers said. The local currency closed at 1,049.60 won to the dollar, down 23.5 won from Wednesday's close and the weakest close since Oct. 25, 2005 when it finished at 1,055 won to the greenback. The won's daily loss was the biggest since March 17 when the local currency fell by 31.9 won to the dollar. "Amid soaring oil prices, refiners and importers snapped up the dollar to settle bills," said Hong Seung-mo, a dealer at Shinhan Bank. On Wednesday, oil futures in the New York Mercantile Exchange extended their relentless advance, rising to a new record near US$124 a barrel. South Korea, the world's fifth-largest crude buyer, relies entirely on imports for its oil needs. The won tumbled to as low as 1,050 won at one point as offshore investors snapped up the dollar, but it pared some losses on investors' profit-taking, dealers said. Policymakers' conflicting remarks also led the currency market to undergo fluctuations. The won rose to 1,034.50 won to the greenback after the central bank said if high oil costs and the won's weakness continue, the South Korean economy is likely to grow at a slower pace and a current account deficit will likely widen. Earlier in the day, the BOK left the policy rate unchanged at 5 percent for the ninth straight month on inflation woes. But the won tumbled to the 1,040 won range versus the dollar after Vice Finance Minister Choi Joong-kyung made comments in favor of a weaker won, saying that the country is still seeing a current account shortfall and the won's fall is natural, stemming from an imbalance between supply and demand. The won's plunge also came as offshore investors cut their stock holdings and foreigners bought the dollar to repatriate dividends to their home countries. South Korea's key stock index fell 0.32 percent on the main bourse with foreigners unloading 351 billion won ($334.4 million). |
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Copyright 2008 APU Newswire. All rights reserved. Please read the End User Agreement. News provided by COMTEX |
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