South Korea’s won rose early on Wednesday on higher commodity prices after geopolitical risks mounted after Turkey’s downing of a Russian fighter jet near Syrian border.
The won was quoted at 1,146.1 per dollar as of 0241 GMT, up 0.7 per cent from Tuesday’s close at 1,153.8.
“The dollar softened against commodity currencies this morning, prompting investors to cut their risk exposure,’’ said Jeon Seung-ji, a foreign exchange analyst at Samsung Futures.
Turkey had shot down a Russian aircraft near the Syrian border on Tuesday, saying the jet had violated its air space, in one of the most serious publicly acknowledged clashes between a NATO member country and Russia for half-a-century.
On the stock market, the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) was down 0.2 per cent at 2,011.51 points after touching the intraday high of 2,018.93.
Decliners outnumbered advancers by 16 to 10.
“Markets showed comparatively limited movements toward Russia-Turkey concerns as such geopolitical tensions are usually short-lived,’’ said Kim Ye-eun, a stock analyst at LIG Investment & Securities.
Tech giant Samsung Electronics Co Ltd gained 0.4 per cent and steelmaker POSCO rose 0.3 per cent, showing strong moves on the back of stronger commodity prices.
Travel-related stocks fell, with Korean Air Lines Co Ltd and Hanatour Services Inc losing 0.9 per cent and 1.3 per cent, respectively.
Foreign investors sold a net 112 billion Korean won ($97.72 million) worth of KOSPI shares near mid-session, weighing on the index. December futures on three-year treasury bonds edged up 0.01 points at 109.23.