An employee sorts U.S. dollar bills at Hana Bank’s counterfeit response center at its headquarters in Seoul. (Yonhap)
South Korea’s foreign exchange reserves rose by more than $4 billion in April, helped by a weaker U.S. dollar, the Bank of Korea said Wednesday.
In its report on foreign reserves as of end-April 2026, the central bank said reserves stood at $427.88 billion at the end of last month, up $4.22 billion from the end of March.
By asset type, securities totaled $384.07 billion, an increase of $6.37 billion from a month earlier. Special drawing rights rose by $240 million. Deposits fell by $2.29 billion, and the International Monetary Fund position declined by $90 million.
The U.S. dollar depreciated 1.5% in April, based on the U.S. Dollar Index, lifting the dollar value of foreign-currency assets held in other currencies.
The Bank of Korea said the increase reflected higher dollar-converted values of non-dollar assets and investment returns, despite market-stabilization measures including foreign exchange swaps with the National Pension Service.
South Korea’s reserves ranked 12th in the world as of the end of March, when they stood at $423.7 billion. China ranked first with $3,342.1 billion, followed by Japan ($1,374.7 billion), Switzerland ($1,069.8 billion), Russia ($749.0 billion), India ($691.1 billion), Taiwan ($596.9 billion), Germany ($594.1 billion), Saudi Arabia ($496.3 billion), Italy ($452.5 billion), France ($445.0 billion) and Hong Kong ($430.8 billion).
In its report on foreign reserves as of end-April 2026, the central bank said reserves stood at $427.88 billion at the end of last month, up $4.22 billion from the end of March.
By asset type, securities totaled $384.07 billion, an increase of $6.37 billion from a month earlier. Special drawing rights rose by $240 million. Deposits fell by $2.29 billion, and the International Monetary Fund position declined by $90 million.
The U.S. dollar depreciated 1.5% in April, based on the U.S. Dollar Index, lifting the dollar value of foreign-currency assets held in other currencies.
The Bank of Korea said the increase reflected higher dollar-converted values of non-dollar assets and investment returns, despite market-stabilization measures including foreign exchange swaps with the National Pension Service.
South Korea’s reserves ranked 12th in the world as of the end of March, when they stood at $423.7 billion. China ranked first with $3,342.1 billion, followed by Japan ($1,374.7 billion), Switzerland ($1,069.8 billion), Russia ($749.0 billion), India ($691.1 billion), Taiwan ($596.9 billion), Germany ($594.1 billion), Saudi Arabia ($496.3 billion), Italy ($452.5 billion), France ($445.0 billion) and Hong Kong ($430.8 billion).
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.