South Korea's foreign exchange reserves grew for the third consecutive month in August, primarily driven by increased value of non-dollar currencies and higher investment returns, according to data released by the Bank of Korea on Wednesday.

The Bank of Korea reported that South Korea's foreign exchange reserves totaled $416.29 billion at the end of August, representing an increase of $4.95 billion from July.

The August-end figure marks the highest level since September 2024, when reserves stood at $419.97 billion.

The central bank attributed the growth to the depreciation of the U.S. dollar, which boosted the value of non-dollar assets, combined with rising investment returns. The dollar index declined by 2% last month.

As of the end of August, the value of foreign securities held by the Bank of Korea, including U.S. Treasury bonds, reached $366.1 billion, accounting for 88% of total foreign exchange reserves.

Foreign currency deposits were valued at $25 billion, while special drawing rights (SDR) totaled $15.78 billion. Gold holdings remained unchanged at $4.79 billion.

The data also showed that South Korea's International Monetary Fund (IMF) reserve position increased by 1.12% month-over-month to $4.54 billion at the end of August.