The won-dollar exchange rate opened at 1,472.2 won on the 6th, up 3.7 won from the previous day. Overnight, New York stocks closed lower across the board as investor sentiment toward artificial intelligence (AI) worsened. Foreign investors are also selling stocks in the domestic market. As a result, demand for won has fallen, pushing down the won's value.
On the 5th (local time) at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 48,908.72, down 592.58 points (-1.20%) from the previous session. The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 closed at 6,798.40, down 84.32 points (-1.23%), and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite closed at 22,540.59, down 363.99 points (-1.59%). The declines came as large-scale AI investments by big tech corporations came into focus.
Alphabet, Google's parent, said AI-related capital expenditures are expected to approach double last year's level, sending its shares down 0.5%. Microsoft and Amazon also fell more than 4% as expense tied to AI infrastructure investment increased.
Foreign investors are also net sellers of domestic stocks. As of 9:13 a.m. that day, foreign investors had sold more than 160 billion won on the Korea Exchange. As a result, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) stood at 4,926.99, down 4.54% from the previous day.
Min Kyung-won of Woori Bank said, "The market's sell-off of risky assets is intensifying," adding that it is "a factor that increases pressure on the weak won, which is classified as a risky currency."