ID :
209030
Fri, 09/23/2011 - 12:20
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/209030
The shortlink copeid
S. Korea to step up monitoring of foreign currency liquidity
(ATTN: ADDS details in last three paras)
SEOUL (Yonhap) - South Korea's financial watchdog said Friday it plans to beef up monitoring of foreign currency liquidity conditions and capital flows amid escalating market volatility stemming from lingering economic uncertainties in Europe and the United States.
"We plan to monitor banks' foreign currency conditions and bolster daily monitoring of foreign investors' trading trends and signs of capital outflow," Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Gov. Kwon Hyouk-se told lawmakers at a parliamentary audit.
Kwon's remarks come a day after the U.S. Federal Reserve's economic outlook and a spate of ratings downgrades of U.S. and Italian lenders pummeled the local financial market.
On Thursday, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slumped 2.9 percent and the local currency plummeted 29.9 won against the U.S. dollar. The cost of insuring South Korea's sovereign debt against default also shot up to a 28-month high.
The financial watchdog plans to induce local banks with large loans from European lenders to diversify their lending sources and extend loan maturities, Kwon said.
The FSS will also seek to reinforce the role of institutional investors and step up risk management on stock investments.
The top regulator later told lawmakers that he believes the local financial sector is better prepared for a possible financial crisis compared with 2008, citing improvements in financial firms' loan-to-deposit ratios and foreign currency liquidities.
Kwon, meanwhile, said the any negative impact of the country's large household debts are likely to be limited in the short term.
"Household debts may become a problem in the mid- to long-term, but they are unlikely to pose serious influences on financial firms' health in the near future," he said at the parliamentary audit.
mil@yna.co.kr
(END)
SEOUL (Yonhap) - South Korea's financial watchdog said Friday it plans to beef up monitoring of foreign currency liquidity conditions and capital flows amid escalating market volatility stemming from lingering economic uncertainties in Europe and the United States.
"We plan to monitor banks' foreign currency conditions and bolster daily monitoring of foreign investors' trading trends and signs of capital outflow," Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) Gov. Kwon Hyouk-se told lawmakers at a parliamentary audit.
Kwon's remarks come a day after the U.S. Federal Reserve's economic outlook and a spate of ratings downgrades of U.S. and Italian lenders pummeled the local financial market.
On Thursday, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) slumped 2.9 percent and the local currency plummeted 29.9 won against the U.S. dollar. The cost of insuring South Korea's sovereign debt against default also shot up to a 28-month high.
The financial watchdog plans to induce local banks with large loans from European lenders to diversify their lending sources and extend loan maturities, Kwon said.
The FSS will also seek to reinforce the role of institutional investors and step up risk management on stock investments.
The top regulator later told lawmakers that he believes the local financial sector is better prepared for a possible financial crisis compared with 2008, citing improvements in financial firms' loan-to-deposit ratios and foreign currency liquidities.
Kwon, meanwhile, said the any negative impact of the country's large household debts are likely to be limited in the short term.
"Household debts may become a problem in the mid- to long-term, but they are unlikely to pose serious influences on financial firms' health in the near future," he said at the parliamentary audit.
mil@yna.co.kr
(END)
