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Friday September 14, 3:34 PMS.Korea won hits 1-mth high despite govt warningSEOUL, Sept 14 (Reuters) - The South Korean won hit a one-month high against the dollar on Friday despite the Finance Ministry's warning about the won's rise as demand from exporters outweighed fears about intervention.The won is expected to gain further next week on exporter deals, although rekindled worries about intervention may prevent investors from chasing the unit, dealers said. All investors are also keeping an eye on the U.S. Federal Reserve's meeting on Tuesday to see whether the Fed cuts interest rates as expected. South Korea's Finance Ministry said it would take action if the won rises excessively against the dollar, saying the central bank's recent intervention in the swaps market should not necessarily boost the local currency. [ID:nSEV000168] The comment prompted investors to cover dollar-short positions and importers to sell the won, forcing the currency to cut early gains. Some market players built up long positions in the dollar. But they had to clear those positions as South Korea's foreign exchange authorities were not spotted buying dollars and as a domestic shipbuilder announced big foreign orders. "Investors built up dollar-long positions as they expected the government to defend the 930 level, but as the authorities did not act, market players had to clear their positions. Exporters also chased the won," said a foreign bank dealer. The won was last quoted at 928.3/8.6 per dollar, compared to its previous closing bid of 931.1. It rose to as high as 927.8, the strongest since Aug. 13. The South Korean unit rose about 1 percent against the dollar for the week. On the economic front, South Korean exports in August rose 14.0 percent from a year ago, revised data from the customs agency showed, slightly down from a 14.4 percent annual gain posted in the provisional data. [ID:nSEO346658] The country assumed gross domestic product would grow 5 percent and exports rise 13 percent in 2008 over this year as the base for its tax revenue projection for the new year. [ID:nSEO101749] The government also assumed the won's average value would reach 920 per dollar in 2008, domestic online media EDaily reported. But the Finance Ministry said the won was around the level when the government made up the tax revenue projection and that it was not a government forecast of the currency. South Koreans bought foreign properties worth $89 million in August, 20.5 percent less than $112 million in the previous month, the government data showed. Adding expectations for more demand for the won, Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co. said it had won a combined $740 million in orders to build a drill ship and a crude oil carrier. [ID:nSEO108681] Seoul shares ended up 1.19 percent a day after rising 1.9 percent, as steel makers approached a record in anticipation of higher prices for their products. But foreign investors sold a net 294.1 billion won worth of shares in South Korea's main stock market. The dollar held just above a 15-year low against a basket of currencies as investors awaited data on U.S. retail sales for clues on whether the housing market troubles are hurting the economy further. The yen was at 115.15/18 per dollar versus 114.77/81 in late New York trade on Thursday.
0650 GMT 0315 GMT prev close
Won 928.3/8.6 930.9/1.3 931.1
Yen/won 8.0596/643 8.0950/1055 8.0916
KOSPI 1,870.02 1,870.26 1,848.02
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