Seoul to extend foreign exchange trading

Under study: A currency dealer monitoring exchange rates in a trading room at a bank in Seoul. A local forex committee has been looking into ways to address the challenges faced by global funds that trade the won outside local hours. — AFP

SEOUL: South Korea will extend trading in its foreign-exchange (forex) market and ease restrictions against overseas investors in a bid to encourage more foreign participation – reversing a decades-old policy intended to limit volatile capital flows.

Onshore dollar-won spot market trading hours will be extended significantly from the current 9:00am to 3:30pm local time span, the finance ministry said in a statement yesterday, without providing details.