South Korea's Average Daily FX Trading Hits Record for Third Straight Quarter

South Korea's average daily foreign-exchange trading volume set a record for a third consecutive quarter in the third quarter, extending a streak that began in the first quarter. According to Sina Finance, citing the Bank of Korea, average daily FX turnover, including derivatives, reached $122.001 billion from July through September, up $570 million, or 0.5%, from the second quarter. The Bank of Korea said robust exports boosted FX trading, while a stock-market pullback reduced foreign investors' equity trading, slowing the quarter-on-quarter increase. Total imports and exports rose to $173.9 billion in the third quarter from $154.7 billion in the previous quarter. Foreign investors' average monthly stock trading in July and August was 1,154 trillion won (about $862.8 billion), below the second-quarter monthly average of 1,285 trillion won. Average daily spot FX turnover fell 6.2% quarter on quarter to $50.74 billion, while derivatives turnover rose 5.9% to $71.26 billion.