FX Reserves Rise for 7th Straight Month to $254.3 Bln

Korea’s foreign exchange reserves grew for the seventh straight month in September to reach 254.3 billion U.S. dollars, the Bank of Korea said yesterday.

The amount of reserves jumped 8.79 billion dollars from late August for a rise of 52.71 billion dollars over the past seven months.

The figure is also the highest since 258.1 billion dollars in June last year.

The central bank cited for the surge in foreign currency reserves rising operating profits, retrieval of maturing foreign exchange equalization funds, and an increase in the dollar-converted amount resulting from the surging euro and yen.

The bank is believed to have bought a large amount of dollars to prevent the won from appreciating too much against the greenback.

At this pace, financial observers say, the amount of foreign exchange reserves might break the national record of 264.25 billion dollars set in March last year.

jaeyuna@donga.com