BEIJING, May 27  - China remains committed to its long-standing goal of diversifying it foreign exchange reserves, a government official told Reuters on Thursday.
The official, who is familiar with how the country manages its $2.4 trillion of reserves, said the direction of diversification "will not change", when asked about a report that China was reviewing its euro zone bond holdings. [ID:nN26249716]
Over the past few years, when China mentioned diversification, it was often interpreted as referring to its objective of reducing exposure to the dollar by investing more in other currencies, such as the euro.
Bankers and analysts say that at the margins China has been shifting some of its currency reserves, the world's largest, into a wider range of currencies in recent months, including assets elsewhere in Asia and in commodity-producing countries. (Reporting by Victoria Bi and Simon Rabinovitch; Editing by Ken Wills)

SEOUL, May 27 - The South Korean won extended gains to more than 2 percent against the dollar on Thursday on perceptions its recent selloff was overdone and as the local stock market continued to advance.

TOKYO, May 27 - Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd (5405.T), Japan's third-biggest steelmaker, said BHP Billiton (BHP.AX) (BLT.L) had requested a 10-15 percent rise in the price of coking coal to $225 per tonne for July-September.