Korean Job Discussion Forums

[austinmc86]

Wow. This is a major bummer. Just like the weather, the Won seemed to change overnight.
What happened? Imagine if the USD was stronger right now, and if the U.S. market was better.
Will it get even worse?

[Yaya]

�The won is falling on concerns that the U.S. growth slowdown and Europe�s debt woes will worsen dollar liquidity in the market,� said Sam Hong, senior vice president in charge of currency strategy at Shinhan Bank in Seoul. �There seems to be fear among investors, making reactions excessive.�

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-23/south-korean-won-set-for-worst-week-in-16-months-as-intervention-flagged.html

Since September 1, the Brazilian real, South African rand and Polish zloty are all down by more than 9 percent against the U.S. dollar; Hungary�s forint, long vulnerable because of the country�s big foreign currency debt, is down more than 10 percent. Almost all the leading emerging market currencies are now down on the year, with the notable exception of China�s hard-to-trade renminbi (up 3.2 percent).

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The dangers are particularly acute for South Korea, with its fairly open capital markets and dependence on foreign investors. Seoul has boosted foreign reserves to a record $310 billion from about $200 billion in late 2008, but its short-term overseas debt amounts to half its reserves. Kwon Young-sun, an economist at Nomura, says: �Korea is Asia�s most open economy, apart from Hong Kong and Singapore. It�s a high-beta market, which is highly vulnerable to external risks.�

http://www.cnbc.com/id/44603031

[Steelrails]

[Yaya]

And to think many on this board call Koreans selfish.

[god of English]

[Yaya]

[hogwonguy1979]

1201 to send money back today, not great compared to the past 18 months or so but a heck of a lot better than 3 years ago when it was approaching 1600. so quit whining, at least you have jobs with healthcare etc which is more than you would have if most of you were in the states

more of a concern is inflation, man groceries especially produce has skyrocketed recently

[shifter2009]

Yes, never complain about anything here. Ever. You are all whiners. Going on a message board dedicated to English teachers in Korea and complaining about situations that adversely affect you is the height of selfishness. This board doesn't exist to make you happy!

On a serious note, I am glad that some of you have the "big picture" kind of mentality that you can be cool with your money being worth 10%+ less vs the dollar. Your zen is admirable. I, on the other hand, like my money to be worth as much as humanly possible and when it starts to go down in value, I will whine. Loudly. The Won does not exist to make me happy. It exist for me to buy goods and services, and it buying me significantly less goods and services out side this country than it was a few weeks ago. I, and many others, are not pleased with this. I don't think its unreasonable for us to be able to vent a little steam on a board dedicated to NETs without getting the smug apologist finger wag that we should just be happy we have jobs ect.

[Malislamusrex]

Long term growth in Korea will be fine, the West will lose value because they are spending money they don't have. Korea is protecting its economy and the won is weak, but it wont be when Western economies run out of money.

[rainism]

[KingMomo]

[Weigookin74]

[Weigookin74]

There was a time when big student loans could be paid off here quickly. No more I guess.

[Died By Bear]

[World Traveler]