Korean won’s volatility to dollar hits 18-month high

The volatility of the local currency against the U.S. dollar hit an 18-month high in the second quarter, largely due to the jitters in the foreign exchange market stemming from a weaker yen, the central bank’s data showed Monday. The daily volatility rate of the won-dollar cross rate averaged 0.43 percent in the April-June period, the highest since 0.64 percent tallied in the fourth quarter of 2011 amid the Greece-led debt crisis in the eurozone, according to the data by the Bank of Korea (BOK). The range of fluctuation came in at an average of 4.8 won on a daily basis, also the highest since 7.4 won in the fourth quarter of 2011, with the figure surpassing 10 won logged for four days in the cited three months, the data showed. South Korean News Agency (Yonhap) said the heightened volatility of the won currency against the dollar came as the uncertainties arose in the global foreign exchange market due to the massive monetary easing by the United States and Japan. The Korean won appreciated nearly 10 percent against the greenback and nearly 20 percent to the yen last year, weighing down the export-driven local economy. “Large foreign inflows since the monetary easing raised risks for a sudden outflow of those funds, along with growing concerns about exports depending on the dollar-yen exchange rate,” said Kim Jeong-sik, an economics professor at Yonsei University. Some other experts, meanwhile, said the won’s volatility in recent months is fairly moderate compared with that of other currencies seen in those days.