South Korea's foreign exchange authorities sold nearly $10 billion on a net basis in the second quarter to curb a sharp rise in the won-dollar exchange rate.
According to market stabilization data released by the Bank of Korea on the 30th, the authorities net-sold $9.612 billion in the second quarter to stabilize the foreign exchange market. Converted at the quarter's average rate of 1,502 won per dollar, that amounts to 14.437 trillion won.
It was the fifth-largest quarterly net sale on record, following $22.467 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025, $17.543 billion in the third quarter of 2022, $15.409 billion in the second quarter of 2022 and $13.628 billion in the first quarter of 2026. It also marked a seventh straight quarter of net selling since the fourth quarter of last year.
The central bank and the government buy or sell foreign currency to stabilize the market when the exchange rate swings sharply. Intervention draws on the foreign reserves held and managed by the Bank of Korea. When the won-dollar rate spikes over a short period, the authorities sell dollars to increase supply; when the rate plunges, they sell won and buy dollars.
The authorities began large-scale net dollar sales in the second half of last year as the exchange rate surged. In the second quarter, analysts said, they intervened heavily by selling dollars again as the rate jumped on a stronger greenback driven by war in the Middle East and on profit-taking by foreign investors following the KOSPI's rally. The average won-dollar rate in the second quarter was the highest since the Asian financial crisis.
With the rate having eased back into the 1,300-won range in the third quarter, however, the scale of dollar selling by the authorities is expected to have declined.
The Bank of Korea and the Ministry of Economy and Finance have disclosed quarterly intervention volumes since the third quarter of 2019.
