The won-dollar exchange rate against the U.S. dollar closed at 1,482.5 won on the 10th. It was the same level as the previous day.
The won-dollar exchange rate opened at 1,475.1 won, down 7.4 won from the previous day. But it turned higher in the afternoon. It eventually ended transaction at the same level as the previous day's regular session (9 a.m.–3:30 p.m.) close.
The won-dollar rate started lower as expectations grew for a cease-fire deal between the United States and Iran. If cease-fire talks proceed smoothly and ease geopolitical risk, the market's appetite for risk assets tends to revive. When that happens, the won, which is not a key currency, tends to strengthen.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he was "very optimistic" about cease-fire talks with Iran in a phone interview with NBC on the 9th local time. He added, "Iranian leaders speak very differently at the table than they do to the media," saying, "They are much more reasonable."
Overnight came word that an oil tanker passed through the Strait of Hormuz. Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported that, for the first time since the United States and Iran released a two-week truce, a Gabon-flagged tanker passed through the Strait of Hormuz and was headed to Aegis Pipavav in India.
However, the possibility that talks between the two countries could fall apart still remained, apparently fueling the rise in the won-dollar rate. On the same day, Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, said in a statement, "We will elevate the level of management and control of the Strait of Hormuz to a new dimension." He continued, "We will never overlook the aggressors who attacked our country," and "We will hold them accountable to the very end for what they have done."
Meanwhile, the United States and Iran will hold their first face-to-face talks since the Middle East war on the 11th. The venue is Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan. The U.S. delegation will be led by Vice President JD Vance, and the Iranian delegation by parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, according to reports.