Korean won hits over 1-year high to dollar, shares up

The South Korean currency on Thursday rose to the highest level against the U.S. dollar in more than one year amid foreign capital inflows, dealers said.

The local currency ended at 1,098.20 won against the greenback, up 5.4 won from the previous session’s close. It marked the first time that the won appreciated to the 1,000-level since Sept. 9, 2011.

So far this year, the Korean currency has appreciated 4.88 percent to the dollar amid sustained inflows of foreign capital and Korea’s relatively strong fundamentals.

Korean stocks closed 0.55 percent higher on Thursday as large caps gained on the back of favorable corporate earnings amid a lack of upward momentum, analysts said.

The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index climbed 10.54 points to 1,924.5, stemming a four-day losing streak. (Yonhap News)