South Korea's financial watchdog has beefed up its monitoring of the local financial market and household debt in the wake of the local currency's rapid depreciation and an increase in long-term interest rates.
Financial Supervisory Service(FSS) Governor Zhin Woong-seob chaired a meeting of senior FSS officials on Monday and ordered them to strengthen risk management for household debts, interest rates and the weakening of the local currency, citing growing economic uncertainties at home and abroad.
The FSS chief said the country is facing many internal and external risk factors, including corporate restructuring, uncertainties in the U.S. under a Donald Trump administration, and concerns over China's economic slowdown.
He assessed the local currency is falling sharply against the U.S. dollar while long-term interest rates are rapidly increasing due to these risk factors.
The won-dollar rate, which stood at the one-thousand-110 won level at the end of August, rose to one-thousand-180 won last week. The yield on ten-year Treasury bonds rose to two-point-13 percent from one-point-48 percent over the cited period.
Source: KBS World Radio