Korean Job Discussion Forums

[mindmetoo]

Hmmm so the won might rise 880 from 991? Does the headline writer get the concept of "rise"? Now I realize the won is predicted to rise in value but if they want to use rise with a number, they need to compare how many American dollars a won buys not how much won an American dollar buys.

(Of course a single won buys 0.00108875 US dollars and it might rise to .0013.)

The author correctly calls it a "fall" but the headline writer (usually the editors write headlines not the authors) has zero clue. I think this was in the Korea Times. I know they have whiteys as copy editors but do they actually hire educated reasonably well read copy editors?

[johninmaine]

...yeah, that's an editorial mistake. less won : dollar means it is stronger. if the rate is 1 won : 1 dollar, then it's REALLY strong.

[sojourner1]

They are also incorrectly reporting in saying that the Won is gaining strength on the dollar. NO, it's the U.S. dollar losing value due to the U.S. economy being in a precarious position with high public and private debts, debts possibly too high to be paid back.

This means that if you are working for Won and wish to buy U.S. dollars, then your pay is increasing while earning the same amount of won.

Let's see, a 2 m Won at 880 Won to the dollar=$2272

Right now it's 918 Won to the dollar according to XE.com
This means that a 2 m Won is worth $2178 dollars today.

That's a cool $96 increase.

Keep in mind that if 918 won buys $1, then $1 buys 918 minus the finance costs incurred by the spread of the buy/sell rates which enables banks to make their money.

991 won to the dollar would not be so good compared to 918. It was like 940 and 950 about 6 months ago which shows that there is a trend where it's requiring less Won to buy dollars.

I would say it's safe to say that the US dollar will continue to drop in value for quite some time to come.

[johninmaine]

[sojourner1]

Yes John, I studied finance quite a bit. My undergraduate finance courses used MBA level of books due to the business school I attended being a member of The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). The courses involved very advanced level calculus and statistics a bit too much and finance was said to be the most difficult major the university offered. They sure presented a tough course of study for it not having much job opportunities upon graduation, unless you had a decent size of cash to play the markets with or to start a company with. I studied to be a financial analyst and import/export agent such as for calculating how much to charge the Chinese to produce Boeing 787 airplane parts, valuing stocks, screening stocks, valuing any asset, valuing companies, and valuing anything else from an investment perspective. The day I have money, I believe I can make money with what I learned as this knowledge won't go obsolete until capitalism does. I did have my chance to interview with Boeing for pricing the new 787 parts, but it appeared some young guys from China beat me when I seen who were my competitors at the breakfast/interview event held at a Seattle hotel as I was not offered my dream job despite my best efforts. This is a job where 1 million people worldwide might apply on line for so it is very competitive to get a job in the money these days.

Studying finance did give me skills to aid me in living abroad and particularly in understanding international business in Asia due to the courses having an international business focus mostly being Asia centric. I was interested in taking a job with a western company that would send me on assignments to Asia and other countries as well, but found teaching ESL to be a more practical entry level job for my interests since you are not going to get a high paying professional analyst or import/export agent job right out of college in todays competitive globalized job market.

[Freakstar]

So if the won gains strength then it's good for us, right? But not so good for the folks back home in the States.

[johninmaine]

yes, call it as you wish. the dollar weaker, or the won stronger vs. the dollar.

technically, you have to say the dollar weaker vs. the won, because it's not the Korean economy that is gaining any strong value. it's the US economy that is getting weaker.

maybe it will go to 500W:1....that would be great!!. then, 500 Won would have the same value as 1000W a year ago.

[arpeggi]

i posed this question before, but i'll ask again. i'm soon moving to korea from the U.S. for work and my employer has given me the option to get in paid in either Korean won or U.S. dollar. I asked them that i be paid in Won. Surely, for the next year or so, that should be, in all likelihood, the best option (given current mkt conditions)?

sojourner1: are there any good books that you can recommend off-hand that would enable one to learn more about international business (in a general manner)?

thx.

[johninmaine]

[PRagic]

sojourner1,

Good stuff.

Ever think of going for a financial editor position in Seoul? They pay decent wages at some of the bigger houses here, and your background would be considered an asset. Also, many places give their editors a chance to move up into analyst positions once they take the requisite exam series.

Just a thought. Good luck with whatever you do.

[reactionary]

it seems good for americans, but not so good for canadians or anyone else - the won isn't the only currency gaining against the dollar. i mean, if you want to travel to america from korea - great, you have more money relatively. sending it to another country? the same, maybe even worse. seems the same for traveling to a lot of countries in asia too.

[SPINOZA]

A mate of mine was a copy editor for a major Korean paper and I don't think he'd have allowed that crap to slide. Some of us have no problem with a currency rising in value to a smaller number (GBP has 'risen' from 0.55 to 0.49 against the USD from Jan '04, for example), but they do need to be clear with their concepts, if only to show that they understand.

[ernie]

does it make sense financially to convert some of my savings (Won) to US dollars? how much is the service charge? do some banks offer better deals? i'm thinking that the US dollar is going to rise (somewhat) soon, and i'd like to capitalize on the weak US dollar, especially since the CDN dollar is so high right now...

i'd also like to diversify my currency holdings to mitigate against a currency crash (see Korea, 1998)... any suggestions? thanks

[marlow]

[johninmaine]

....not sure about Canada..but, if you're from the US you might want to put all your WON in a Korean bank right now. watch the market carefully (everyday), and you'll see the US dollar losing strength against the WON...slowly. when it hits 800 or maybe 750, and you see a small spike UP in the US dollar, i would INSTANTLY send all your WON to your US bank. i wouldn't expect the US$ to bottom much below 750WON, so wait till that happens, convert your WON, and WIRE it home fast.

p.s. liability-wise, im not a licensed financial expert so anyone using this information cannot hold me liable.