US puts pressure on South Korea to let won rise

Washington

THE US Treasury has criticised South Korea's currency intervention and Germany's widening trade surplus in a report that called global growth unbalanced and too reliant on the strength of the American economy.

In a semi-annual report on foreign exchange policies, the department said it has stepped up pressure on South Korea to stop intervening and let the won rise. The currency weakened 8.8 per cent against the US dollar in the past three quarters.