Seoul: The South Korean currency strengthened against the U.S. dollar Tuesday, rebounding from its lowest level in nearly 16 years, after the Constitutional Court announced that the long-awaited ruling on President Yoon Suk's impeachment will be delivered later this week. The Korean won was quoted at 1,471.9 won per dollar at 3:30 p.m., up 1.0 won from the previous session.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the currency opened at 1,473.0 won per dollar and dropped further to an intraday low of 1,476.6 won during onshore trading before rebounding slightly. This rebound occurred after the Constitutional Court announced it would deliver the impeachment ruling on Friday. Yoon declared martial law in December, leading to his impeachment by the National Assembly.
Political turmoil and the sweeping tariff policy of the Donald Trump administration have pushed the local currency well below the 1,450-won level. On Monday, the won-dollar rate dipped to its lowest level since March 13, 2009, when the won was quoted at 1,483.5 in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.
Washington is set to announce reciprocal tariffs Wednesday (U.S. time). An annual report on foreign trade barriers released Monday by the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) cited South Korea's "offset" defense trade policy, emission-related regulations on imported cars, and pricing policies for pharmaceuticals as potential "non-reciprocal" trade practices.