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【Bank of Korea Governor: Further appreciation of the won would benefit the economy; restrictive monetary policy will be maintained】

Bank of Korea Governor Shin Hyun-song said that further appreciation of the won would be beneficial, noting that the won’s sharp appreciation since the Bank of Korea shifted toward tightening monetary policy had strengthened household purchasing power. Shin made the remarks on Tuesday during a conversation at the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok with IMF Krishna, Director of the Asia-Pacific Department, saying: “We will maintain a restrictive monetary policy stance until we are confident that inflation will return to the target level in a timely manner.” Shin said that a stronger won was shifting the drivers of economic growth more toward the domestic economy, helping to narrow the development gap in what he called a K-shaped economy. He added that inflation, the exchange rate, and financial stability factors were currently all pointing in the same policy direction, making the policy trade-offs facing the Bank of Korea easier than usual.