Seoul, April 3 – South Korea's foreign reserves saw their sharpest monthly decline in about a year in March, amid a stronger dollar and authorities' efforts to manage exchange rate volatility, the central bank said on Friday.
The country's foreign reserves stood at US$423.66 billion as of the end of March, down US$3.97 billion from a month earlier, according to data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).
This was the sharpest decline since April 2025, when the amount fell by US$4.99 billion on a month-on-month basis, reports Yonhap news agency.
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The reserves had fallen in December for the first time since June, and continued to decline through January before rising in February.
"The U.S. dollar strengthened in March, reducing the dollar value of South Korea's foreign currency assets denominated in other currencies. Also attributable was market stabilization measures, such as foreign exchange swaps with the National Pension Service," a BOK official said.
Foreign securities, including U.S. Treasuries, fell by US$3.97 billion from a month earlier to US$423.66 billion at the end of March, accounting for 89.2 percent of the country's total foreign reserves.
The value of foreign currency deposits lost US$1.44 billion to US$21.05 billion, while special drawing rights (SDRs) fell by US$200 million to US$15.57 billion.
Gold bullion holdings remained unchanged at US$4.79 billion.
The country's reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) decreased by US$60 million from a month earlier to US$4.55 billion at the end of March, the data showed.
South Korea ranked as the world's 12th-largest holder of foreign reserves as of the end of February, down from tenth place a month earlier.
China topped the list, followed by Japan, Switzerland, Russia and India, according to the BOK.
"Though South Korea's foreign exchange reserves increased by US$1.7 billion in February, some peer countries mark their gold holdings to market for comparison, and recent gains in gold prices have contributed to their higher rankings," the BOK official said.
Meanwhile, the South Korean won weakened against the U.S. dollar, following a sharp gain in the previous session, as U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to continue military operations against Iran, dampening hopes for an end to the monthlong conflict.
The won's weakening came after Trump said in a prime-time address earlier in the day that the United States would "hit Iran extremely hard over the next two to three weeks" and "bring them back to the Stone Age," without presenting a timeline for a ceasefire or an end to the war that began in late February.
Trump also renewed his call for countries that rely on the Strait of Hormuz for energy imports to "take care of" the key waterway, which has effectively been shut since the conflict began.
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