The won-dollar exchange rate opened at 1,474 won per U.S. dollar on the 11th. It rose 4.8 won from the previous day.
Overnight, Pete Hegseth, the U.S. Minister of defense, said at a "military operations briefing on Iran" held at the Pentagon that "the attack on Iran will once again be the most intense day." He signaled the strongest offensive, and this appears to have heightened risk-off sentiment in the market. When investors increase allocations to safe-haven assets, the won, which is not a reserve currency, tends to fall.
On the 10th (local time), the Minister also said, "The most fighter jets and bombers, the most airstrikes will take place," adding, "We will not stop until the enemy is completely and decisively defeated."
On the same day, White House Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said at a briefing that the end point of the military operation would be "ultimately when the commander in chief (President Trump) determines that the military objectives have been fully achieved." She added that it "will end when it is determined that Iran, regardless of its own declarations, has reached a state of complete and unconditional surrender."
Meanwhile, the three major U.S. stock indexes in New York moved in mixed directions overnight. On the 10th (local time) at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 47,706.51, down 34.29 points, or 0.07%, from the previous session. The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 fell 14.51 points, or 0.21%, to 6,781.48, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.16 points, or 0.01%, to 22,697.10.