Korea closely communicating with US over FX monitoring list status: Cheong Wa Dae

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with senior aides at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap

Korea is closely communicating with the United States over the Treasury Department's decision to maintain the country on its foreign exchange monitoring list, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday.

Korea remains on its list of countries to monitor for foreign exchange policies, along with nine other countries and regions, according to the Treasury Department's latest report. Korea was added back to the list in November 2024 after being removed from it in November 2023.

"Financial authorities are in close communication with the Treasury Department and will continue those consultations," a senior presidential official said.

"The Treasury Department reaffirmed in its report that the recent weakness of the Korean won does not reflect the Korean economy's fundamentals," the official said, noting the designation appears to have been made in accordance with the department's evaluation criteria in a "somewhat mechanical manner."

According to the report, Korea's inclusion on the list was attributable to its bilateral trade surplus with the U.S. and a material current account surplus.

U.S. trading partners are placed on the list if they meet at least two of the three criteria set by the U.S. Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015, including a trade surplus with the U.S. of at least $15 billion and a current account surplus of at least 3 percent of gross domestic product.