South Korea's foreign currency reserves rise slightly in December

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea's foreign currency reserves rose slightly in December, ending an eight-month drop caused by the global credit crunch.

The central bank says the value of the euro and other currency holdings rose on a weaker dollar.

The reserves totalled $201.22 billion at the end of December, up $720 million from the end of November.

The Bank of Korea said in a statement it marked the first rise since March.

The main reason for the increase was that the value of the reserves denominated in euro and other currencies rose as they strengthened against the dollar.

Also helping was the use of dollars the country brought from the United States under a currency swap agreement.