South Korean Won Weakens on Geopolitical Tensions

2026-05-08 02:05 By Erika Ordonez 1 min. read

The South Korean won weakened to around 1,470 per dollar, pulling back after touching a more than two-month high, as renewed US-Iran tensions triggered risk-off sentiment across Asian markets.

The confrontation saw both sides exchange fire in the Strait of Hormuz, raising concerns over potential disruptions to global oil supplies, while pushing Brent crude above $100 per barrel and strengthening the US dollar as investors sought safe-haven assets.

The move prompted broad USD demand and profit-taking across regional currencies, with the won among the weaker performers.

Meanwhile, downside pressure was partly cushioned by strong external fundamentals, after South Korea posted a record current account surplus in March driven by a surge in semiconductor exports.

Expectations of sustained AI-led chip demand and a resilient trade balance continued to provide structural support, even as short-term flows remained dominated by geopolitical risk and dollar strength.



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