South Korea said average daily interbank won-dollar spot foreign exchange trading climbed 10.1% to $19.14 billion after 24-hour trading began on July 6, up from $17.39 billion in the first half of the year, as authorities pointed to deeper liquidity and stable market operations. The government said the market has run without disruptions such as failed trades and that the won-dollar exchange rate has remained stable relative to other major currencies. Late-night activity is still building because the system is new and overseas time-zone differences remain a constraint, so Seoul will give extra weight to overnight turnover when choosing lead banks for the won-dollar market. Trading from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. will count double and trading from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. the next day will count triple, with selected domestic banks receiving benefits such as lower foreign exchange soundness levies. Officials also said 30 of 39 tasks in the January roadmap for MSCI developed-market inclusion have been completed, with three more due this year: e-FX guidelines, easier securities-settlement funding and a Bank of Korea won international settlement network. Second Vice Minister Heo Jang said an expected drop in net external financial assets after a 68% second-quarter rise in the KOSPI reflects higher valuations of Korean stocks held by foreigners, supported by improving fundamentals such as stronger corporate earnings, rather than weaker external soundness.