Korea's foreign reserves shrink for first time in 4 months in February

Dollar bills are stacked in Hana Bank at Jung District, central Seoul, on Monday. [NEWS1]

Korea's foreign reserves shrank for the first time in four months in February as a stronger dollar reduced the conversion value of holdings in other currencies, central bank data showed Monday.

The country's foreign reserves had come to $425.29 billion as of end-February, down $4.68 billion from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).

The downturn was due in part to a stronger dollar that led to a fall in the dollar-converted value of holdings denominated in other currencies.

The dollar index that gauges the greenback's value against major peers rose about 2.3 percent last month, the central bank said.

Foreign reserves consist of securities and deposits denominated in overseas currencies, International Monetary Fund reserve positions, special drawing rights and gold bullion.

Foreign securities, such as U.S. Treasuries, had been valued at $374.49 billion as of end-February, which accounted for 88.1 percent of total foreign reserves, the data showed.

The value of deposits stood at $26.75 billion, which made up 6.3 percent of the total. But the amount was down $7.42 billion from a month earlier.

Korea had been ranked the world's ninth-largest holder of foreign reserves at the end of January, the BOK said.

Yonhap