As of the end of May, foreign currency deposits held by domestic residents in South Korea have increased for the second consecutive month.
According to the Bank of Korea's report released on June 26, the balance of foreign currency deposits at foreign exchange banks reached $112.25 billion, an increase of $1.57 billion from the previous month. This marks a rebound in foreign currency deposits after four months of decline.
Resident foreign currency deposits include those held by South Koreans, domestic companies, foreigners residing in South Korea for more than six months, and foreign companies operating in the country.
The increase in foreign currency deposits was primarily driven by U.S. dollars and corporate deposits.
By currency type, U.S. dollar deposits rose to $95.56 billion, an increase of $2.24 billion. Factors contributing to this growth included large corporations receiving current account payments and inflows related to margin trading by securities firms.
In recent times, increased volatility in exchange rates and interest rates has led to a rise in the maintenance margin required for derivative trading, resulting in higher dollar inflows to securities firms.
Conversely, Japanese yen deposits fell to $7.52 billion, decreasing by $690 million due to a reduction in customer deposits at securities firms and current account payments. Euro deposits also declined by $280 million to $6.3 billion, attributed to current account payments.
By sector, corporate deposits increased by $2.54 billion to $97.42 billion, while individual deposits decreased by $960 million to $14.83 billion.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.