Korean won hits 18-year high against Japanese yen on booming chip exports

The Korean won fell to 844.16 won per 100 yen in Seoul on Wednesday, its strongest level against the Japanese currency in 18 years and 9 months. Analysts attributed the won’s strength primarily to booming semiconductor exports, which increased dollar inflows and widened Korea’s current account surplus. The won-dollar rate also declined from 1,549.4 at the end of June to 1,352.8 at the end of September, while the yen remained weak despite Japanese intervention.

Hana Bank recorded the won-yen rate at 844.16 won per 100 yen, compared with 837.58 won in January 2008.

The won-yen rate had been between 930 and 950 won per 100 yen in early July before falling sharply over three months.

HSBC Global Investment Research said Korea’s record current account surplus was supporting the won as gains flowed into investment, bonuses, shareholder returns and taxes.

The yen returned to the 157-160 yen-per-dollar range after a coordinated intervention by US and Japanese authorities briefly moved it to around 156 yen per dollar.

Analysts said the won-yen divergence could continue through the end of the year, when Korean exports and the won typically perform well.

Published Oct 7, 2026 4:03 pm KST

A banker inspects yen notes at a Hana Bank branch in Seoul, Sept. 3. Yonhap

A boom in Korea's semiconductor exports has strengthened the won, pushing it to its highest level against the Japanese yen in 18 years and 9 months, analysts said Wednesday.

According to Hana Bank, the won-yen exchange rate fell as low as 844.16 won per 100 yen in intraday trading Wednesday, its lowest level since January 2008, when it stood at 837.58 won. The rate had hovered between 930 and 950 won per 100 yen in early July before falling sharply over the past three months.

The yen is not traded directly in Seoul's foreign exchange market. Instead, banks calculate the won-yen exchange rate indirectly using each currency's exchange rate against the U.S. dollar.

The won and the yen have moved in sharply different directions since July, a rare divergence between two currencies whose movements have historically reflected "significant overlap in the two countries' export structures," according to Ashok Bhundia, deputy chief economist at the Institute of International Finance.

Analysts say the biggest driver of the Korean won's strength has been semiconductors. Robust chip exports have boosted dollar inflows into Korea and helped underpin a widening current account surplus.

HSBC Global Investment Research called Korea's record current account surplus a "game changer for the Korean won." It said more of the gains are being recycled into the domestic economy through investment, bonuses, shareholder returns and taxes, prompting foreign exchange conversion and further supporting the currency.

"Admittedly, exports growth is still quite narrow-based — so the risk for the Korean won is that the AI boom suddenly ends," said Joey Chew, head of Asia FX research at HSBC.

Stephen Chiu, chief emerging markets foreign exchange strategist at Bloomberg Intelligence, said the won's rally has slowed recently, a development that may be more comfortable for policymakers, but that the currency has remained resilient around 1,340 per dollar.

The Korean won has been one of the few currencies to post significant gains against the U.S. dollar since July. The won-dollar exchange rate fell from 1,549.4 won per dollar at the end of June to 1,424 won at the end of July, 1,368.6 won at the end of August and 1,352.8 won at the end of September.

By contrast, the yen has struggled to gain ground despite the Bank of Japan's interest rate hike last month.

The yen weakened to nearly 164 per dollar in late July, prompting an unusual coordinated intervention by U.S. and Japanese authorities that briefly pushed the exchange rate back to around 156 yen per dollar. The effect of the intervention proved short-lived, with the rate subsequently returning to the 157-160 yen-per-dollar range.

Chiu said the divergence between the two currencies is likely to persist through the end of the year, a period when Korean exports and the won tend to perform well.

周三，韩元兑日元汇率在首尔跌至844.16韩元兑100日元，创下18年9个月以来的最高水平。分析人士认为，韩元走强主要归功于半导体出口的蓬勃发展，这增加了美元流入，并扩大了韩国的经常账户盈余。韩元兑美元汇率也从6月底的1549.4降至9月底的1352.8，而尽管日本进行了干预，日元依然疲软。

韩亚银行记录的韩元兑日元汇率为每100日元兑换844.16韩元，而2008年1月为每100日元兑换837.58韩元。

7月初，韩元兑日元汇率在100日元兑换930至950韩元之间，之后三个月内急剧下跌。

汇丰环球投资研究部表示，韩国创纪录的经常账户盈余支撑了韩元汇率，因为盈余流入了投资、奖金、股东回报和税收。

在美国和日本当局的协调干预下，日元兑美元汇率一度短暂升至 156 日元左右，随后又回落至 157-160 日元兑 1 美元区间。

分析人士表示，韩元兑日元汇率的背离可能会持续到年底，届时韩国出口和韩元通常表现良好。

发布于2026年10月7日下午4:03（韩国标准时间）

9月3日，一名银行职员在首尔一家韩亚银行分行检查日元纸币。（韩联社）

分析人士周三表示，韩国半导体出口的繁荣提振了韩元，使其对日元汇率升至 18 年 9 个月以来的最高水平。

据韩亚银行数据显示，周三盘中交易中，韩元兑日元汇率一度跌至100日元兑844.16韩元，创下自2008年1月以来的最低水平，当时汇率为100日元兑837.58韩元。7月初，韩元兑日元汇率曾在100日元兑930至950韩元之间徘徊，但在过去三个月里大幅下跌。

日元不在首尔外汇市场直接交易。银行是通过计算韩元和日元兑美元的汇率，间接得出韩元兑日元的汇率。

据国际金融协会副首席经济学家阿肖克·邦迪亚 (Ashok Bhundia) 称，自 7 月以来，韩元和日元的走势截然不同，这两种货币的走势在历史上反映了“两国出口结构的显著重叠”，这种情况实属罕见。

分析人士指出，韩元走强的最大驱动力来自半导体行业。强劲的芯片出口提振了美元流入韩国，并有助于支撑不断扩大的经常账户盈余。

汇丰环球投资研究称，韩国创纪录的经常账户盈余对韩元而言是“改变游戏规则的因素”。报告指出，更多盈余正通过投资、奖金、股东回报和税收等方式回流到国内经济，促进外汇兑换，从而进一步支撑韩元汇率。

汇丰银行亚洲外汇研究主管周祖云表示：“诚然，出口增长的基础仍然相当狭窄——因此韩元面临的风险是人工智能热潮突然结束。”

彭博资讯首席新兴市场外汇策略师史蒂芬·邱表示，韩元近期的涨势有所放缓，这一发展可能令政策制定者感到欣慰，但韩元兑美元汇率仍保持在 1340 左右的坚挺水平。

自7月以来，韩元是少数几种对美元大幅升值的货币之一。韩元兑美元汇率从6月底的1549.4韩元跌至7月底的1424韩元，8月底的1368.6韩元，以及9月底的1352.8韩元。

相比之下，尽管日本央行上个月加息，日元却难以走强。

7月下旬，日元兑美元汇率一度跌至接近164日元，促使美日两国当局罕见地采取协调干预措施，短暂地将汇率推回至156日元左右。但干预措施的效果昙花一现，汇率随后回落至157-160日元区间。

邱表示，这两种货币之间的差异可能会持续到年底，而这段时间通常是韩国出口和韩元表现良好的时期。