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Monday June 18, 12:10 PMS.Korea won around 9-½ high vs yen; BOK warySEOUL, June 18 (Reuters) - South Korea's won hit its highest against the dollar in more than ten days on Monday and stayed near its highest in a decade versus the yen, prompting the Bank of Korea to express concern over a deepening trade imbalance with Japan.The won's gains were capped as investors remained wary of possible dollar-buying intervention by South Korea's foreign exchange authorities and by supplies from importers. The local unit was quoted at 927.7/8.4 per dollar by 0320 GMT, after rising to as high as 926.7, its strongest since 926.1 on June 7, compared to its previous closing bid of 927.8. The won rose to a session high of 7.5030 against the yen, not far from Friday's peak of 7.5012, its strongest since 7.4522 on Oct. 24, 1997. "Market players perceive that only intervention can stop won gains despite importers' deals as exporters are still looking for chances to buy the won on dips," said a foreign bank dealer. South Korea expressed concerns over the won's gain against they yen as the country's trade deficit with Japan balloons. [ID:nSEO75829] The South Korean currency has risen about 4 percent against the Japanese unit so far this year. On the corporate front, Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co. Ltd. said it had won a 205.6 billion won order from Europe to build five product carriers, prompting investors to expect more demand for the won. [ID:nSEO210155] Separately, Ssangyong Engineering & Construction Co. Ltd. said it had secured a $108 million construction deal in Indonesia. The won is expected to get support from exports this week although. It is seen moving between 925.1 per dollar and 933.6, according to a Reuters poll of 10 dealers. A core measure of the U.S. consumer price index during May rose just 0.1 percent, figures showed on Friday, below Wall Street's median forecast of 0.2 percent, which pushed the dollar down against the euro. [ID:nN14339898] But the U.S. currency rose against the yen as the Bank of Japan indicated it was no hurry to lift interest rates soon. The yen was at 123.53/55 per dollar, versus 123.40/42 in late New York trade on Friday. In Seoul's main stock market, the benchmark KOSPI rose 1.2 percent to a fresh record, while foreign investors sold a net 238.7 billion won in shares.
0320 GMT 0040 GMT prev close
Won 927.7/8.4 927.6/8.3 927.8
Yen/won 7.5087/174 7.5128/215 7.5156
KOSPI 1,793.54 1,787.70 1,772.26
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