South Korea's foreign exchange reserves fell to their lowest level in five years at the end of April.

Jin10 data reported on May 8, South Korea’s forex reserves fell to a five-year low in April as authorities took measures to stabilize the market to mitigate the impact of global trade fluctuations. Data released by the Bank of Korea on Thursday showed that as of the end of April, South Korea’s forex reserves stood at $404.67 billion, a decrease of $4.99 billion, marking the lowest level since April 2020 and the largest monthly drop since April 2024. The Bank of Korea indicated that forex swap transactions with South Korean pension funds were one of the factors leading to the decrease in forex reserves. This transaction aimed to temporarily reduce the dollar demand in the forex market. In early April, influenced by President Trump’s comprehensive tariff policy, the Korean won fell to its weakest level in 16 years. Later, the KRW/USD reversed its trend, rising 3.3% that month, marking the largest single-month increase since November 2023.