South Korea's central bank said on Wednesday that the won could face downward pressure again, vowing to strengthen monitoring of risk factors and stabilize the market if necessary, according to Jinshi. In its twice-yearly financial stability report, the Bank of Korea said it was "difficult to completely rule out the possibility that downward pressure on the won will intensify again," noting that major risk factors facing the won include frustrated expectations of U.S. rate cuts and geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East. The finance chiefs of South Korea and Japan jointly expressed concerns about the sharp decline in their currencies and vowed to defend them. The Bank of Korea said the won's recent weakness has outweighed the dollar's gains.
