Seoul: Foreign currency deposits in South Korea surged to their highest level in over 2 1/2 years last month, driven by corporate deposits, central bank data showed Friday. Outstanding foreign currency-denominated deposits held by residents had stood at US$107.64 billion as of end-August, up $2.49 billion from a month earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).
According to Yonhap News Agency, it marked the highest level since January 2023, when foreign currency deposits stood at $109.25 billion. Residents include South Korean citizens, foreigners who have resided in the country for more than six months, and foreign companies. The data excludes interbank foreign currency deposits.
The growth came as corporate foreign currency deposits rose by $2.54 billion on-month to $92.96 billion, while individual holdings edged down by $40 million to $14.69 billion. By currency, dollar-denominated deposits rose by $2.24 billion to $90.96 billion, and Japanese yen-denominated deposits went up $290 million to $9.04 billion.
Euro-denominated deposits grew $60 million to $5.13 billion, while Chinese yuan-denominated deposits shed $60 million to $1.13 billion. "The increase in dollar deposits was attributable to a rise in investors' deposits at securities firms and the receipt of current account payments by some companies," a BOK official said.