The won-dollar exchange rate against the U.S. dollar closed at 1,493.6 won on the 17th. It fell 3.9 won from the previous day.
This is seen as the result of easing tensions among the United States, Israel, and Iran. When geopolitical risks ease, risk appetite tends to revive, and the value of the won, which is not a reserve currency, tends to rise.
Overnight, word came that the United States and Iran reactivated a dialogue channel. U.S. political outlet Axios, citing a U.S. official, reported that direct communication resumed between U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Iran Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi. It also said Minister Araghchi sent Envoy Witkoff a text message focused on a cease-fire.
However, there was also a conflicting report. The nonprofit investigative outlet Drop Site News reported that Envoy Witkoff sent Minister Araghchi a text message, but Minister Araghchi ignored it.
Markets appear focused on the fact that the United States and Iran have started talks. Overnight in New York, all three major U.S. stock indexes rose together. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the transaction at 46,946.41, up 387.94 points, or 0.83%, from the previous session.
The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 rose 67.19 points, or 1.01%, to 6,699.38, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite gained 268.82 points, or 1.22%, to finish at 22,374.178.
Park Sang-hyun, a researcher at iM Securities, said, "If the Iran situation moves into a resolution phase—in other words, if the Strait of Hormuz is likely to reopen—oil prices could fall further and the exchange rate could quickly stabilize lower."