Currency market to stabilize on falling oil prices: official

SEOUL, Oct. 1 (Yonhap) -- The volatility of South Korea's currency market is
expected to ease on falling oil prices and their positive impact on the nation's
current account balance, a senior finance ministry official said Wednesday.

"With international crude oil prices going down, the current account balance for
October will likely to turn around, helping to stabilize the local currency
market," Vice Finance Minister Bae Kook-hwan told a local radio program.
Currency movements should be left to market conditions but excessive fluctuations
will require government intervention, Bae said without elaborating.
On Tuesday, the won tumbled to a 64-month low of 1,207 won against the U.S.
dollar, down 18.2 won from the previous day's close. The won has been one of the
biggest decliners among Asia's currencies.
According to the Bank of Korea, the nation's current account deficit soared to a
record monthly high of US$4.71 billion in August, bringing its cumulative loss
for this year to $12.6 billion.
Citing oil price falls, Finance Minister Kang Man-soo forecast Tuesday that the
current account deficit for September would hover below $1 billion and the
current account balance would return to the black for October.
The central bank is slated to announce the nation's current account figures for
September in late October.