SEOUL, Jan. 20 (Yonhap) -- The South Korean won fell sharply against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, tracking the Japanese yen's slide against the greenback after slightly higher than estimated growth data from China, dealers said.
The local currency closed at 1,088.40 per dollar, down 10.4 won from the previous session's close, falling for a second consecutive day. It touched an intra-day low of 1,088.50 won at one point.
The Korean won usually moves in lockstep with its Japanese peer as the countries compete directly in overseas markets.
The yen continued to remain weak as China reported a better-than-expected 7.4 percent growth for 2014. Dealers said speculation is rising that the European Central Bank would announce a scheme this week to expand its asset purchase program, which in turn helps the dollar build up gains against its peers.
"The won is closely following the yen's move, and traders are wary of possible intervention by authorities," said Son Eun-jung, an analyst at Woori Futures Co.
Also, dollar buying by local importers is bringing the local currency down against the dollar, according to dealers.
Earlier in the day, China said its economic growth slowed to 7.4 percent in 2014, marking the weakest expansion in 24 years, with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) expecting the world's second-largest economy to grow less than 7 percent this year.
It was the first time since 1990 that China's ruling Communist Party failed to meet its annual growth goal for gross domestic product.
But the annual growth figure was slightly higher than the market estimate of 7.3 percent.
Meanwhile, the won-yen cross rate stood at 919.30 per 100 yen as of 3 p.m., down 3 won from the previous session's close.
original source: http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/business/2015/01/20/67/0501000000AEN20150120005900320F.html