A yuan-won direct trading market is set to open in Shanghai in June, which may give both currencies an international push.
South Korean Finance Minister Yoo Il Ho says it is necessary for China and South Korea to complement each other’s macro-economic policies amid a global economic slowdown.
“I do believe that despite the sluggish global economy, as long as the two countries work closely together, the South Korea-China dream featuring win-win solutions may come true,” he said.
South Korea is an export-oriented country with a heavy reliance on the U.S. dollar. That means the greenback’s fluctuations will affect South Korea’s economy. The planned yuan-won market in Shanghai follows a similar directing trading market that was established in Seoul in December 2014.
“It will be the first offshore won trading market and thus has a great significance. It also marks a deeper cooperation between the two countries’ currencies,” Yoo Il Ho said.
South Korea’s financial sector has long prepared for the yuan-won direct trading market. Jung Kwang-Hoon of the Korea Development Bank says the yuan has played a more important role in the world since it was included in the IMF’s special drawing rights basket last year.
The Korean Development Bank has set up a special team to study the Chinese capital market and regularly holds seminars to share the information.
“At the early stage of the yuan-won direct trading, our main goal is not to pursue the high yield, but to lay foundations for a better communication between the two countries’ financial sectors. I think that the launch of the yuan-won market is an important move to push forward the internationalization of both the currencies,” Jung Kwang-Hoon said.
China and South Korea concluded a free trade agreement at the end of last year that boosted their bilateral trade. The investment quota for South Korean investors qualified for yuan trading has reached 120 billion yuan. The yuan-won market is expected to channel more South Korean institutional investors to the Chinese A-share market.
