The won-dollar exchange rate against the U.S. dollar closed weekly trading at 1,501.4 won at 3:30 p.m. on the 10th. That was down 4.7 won (0.31%) from the previous session's weekly transaction closing price.
The rate opened at 1,509.5 won at 6 a.m. that day and fell to 1,506.2 won at 9 a.m. It then ended weekly transactions without a large swing. With this, the rate has stayed above 1,500 won for two straight days. On the 8th, it fell below 1,500 won for the first time in 36 transactions, but it rose again and is holding around 1,500 won.
The drop in the rate is seen as driven by expectations for the Nasdaq listing of SK hynix's American depositary receipt (ADR). If foreigners can trade SK hynix shares on the Nasdaq market, projections say up to $1 billion a day in dollars could be supplied to the Seoul foreign exchange market.
Sustained risk-asset investment sentiment also appears to have affected the rate. The United States and Iran are clashing militarily in the Middle East, but a large-scale full-scale war is considered unlikely. On the 9th (local time), all three major indexes closed higher on the New York stock market.
The KOSPI also closed at 7,475.94, up 2.5% from the previous transaction day. Foreigners were net buyers of domestic stocks for the past three transactions, but were net sellers of 772.8 billion won on the day. When foreigners sell domestic stocks and exchange the proceeds into dollars, dollar demand can expand and the rate can rise.