The Bank of Korea on Oct. 7 in a report said the country's foreign exchange reserves rose from USD 415.92 billion in August to USD 419.97 billion late last month. iClick (*This photo is protected under copyright law and unauthorized reproduction and redistribution are strictly prohibited).

By Hong Angie 

The nation's foreign exchange reserves have risen for the third straight month.

The Bank of Korea on Oct. 7 said in a report that foreign currency reserves at the end of last month amounted to USD 419.97 billion, up 4.05 billion from 415.92 billion in August.

The report said, "This was because the dollar equivalent value of foreign exchange assets denominated in other currencies rose due to the weak dollar amid rising foreign currency deposits at financial institutions."

Foreign currency assets converted into USD grew in amount as the greenback depreciated about 0.9% based on the USD index last month.

By asset, securities such as government and corporate bonds rose USD 3.86 billion (38.6%) in value from the previous month from USD 369.44 billion to USD 373.3 billion. Deposits grew to USD 22.28 billion, up USD 240 million, and special drawing rights of the International Monetary Fund USD 15.33 billion, up 80 million.

The value of gold reserves stayed at USD 4.79 billion given that the metal's purchase price was displayed, not that of the market.

As of the end of August, the nation ranked ninth worldwide in foreign exchange reserves with USD 415.9 billion. China was first with USD 3.28 trillion, Japan second with USD 1.23 trillion and Switzerland third with USD 915.4 billion.

shong9412@korea.kr