The Bank of Korea published statistics on the currencies used to settle Korea’s international trade in 2025, showing the US dollar remained the dominant settlement currency for both exports and imports. For exports, the US dollar share was 84.2%, followed by the euro at 5.9%, the Korean won at 3.4%, and the Japanese yen at 1.9%, with the won share rising by 0.8 percentage points from 2024 while the US dollar share fell by 0.3 percentage points. For imports, the US dollar accounted for 79.3%, followed by the won at 6.6%, the euro at 6.0%, and the yen at 4.0%, with the US dollar share down 1.1 percentage points from 2024. Regional data showed near parity between the US dollar (48.9%) and euro (47.1%) for exports to the European Union, while imports from the European Union were mainly settled in euro (48.0%) and won (26.5%); trade with Japan was largely split between the US dollar and yen on both sides, and trade with China was predominantly US dollar-settled, with yuan accounting for 6.5% of export settlements to China and 13.9% of import settlements from China.
Bank of Korea 2026-04-01
Bank of Korea reports US dollar accounted for 84.2% of Korea’s export settlements and 79.3% of import settlements in 2025
The Bank of Korea published 2025 statistics on settlement currencies for Korea’s international trade, confirming the United States dollar remains dominant for both exports and imports. The United States dollar accounted for 84.2% of export and 79.3% of import settlements, though its share declined slightly from 2024 as the won’s share rose, with notable regional variation including near parity between the United States dollar and euro for exports to the European Union and increased use of yuan in trade with China.