Korea's foreign reserves reach $425.9 billion in January

Korea's official foreign reserves stood at $425.9 billion at the end of January 2026, marking a decrease of $2.1 billion from the previous month.

The largest component, securities, increased by $6.4 billion to $377.5 billion, representing 88.6 percent of the total.

Deposits, however, saw a significant decline, falling by $8.6 billion to $23.3 billion, or 5.5 percent of the reserves.

Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) remained stable at $15.9 billion (3.7 percent), while gold holdings were unchanged at $4.8 billion (1.1 percent).

The country's International Monetary Fund (IMF) position also held steady at $4.4 billion (1.0 percent).

This shift in composition reflects movements in asset valuations and foreign exchange operations during the month.

As of the end of December 2025, Korea maintained its position as the ninth largest holder of foreign reserves globally, with holdings amounting to $428.1 billion.

This places Korea among a select group of countries with substantial reserve buffers.

China led the global ranking with $3,357.9 billion, followed by Japan at $1,369.8 billion and Switzerland with $1,075.1 billion.

Other major reserve holders included Russia, India, Taiwan, Germany, and Saudi Arabia.

The Bank of Korea regularly monitors these international comparisons to assess the country's external resilience and financial stability in a global context.