findark

I was sweeping the technicality under the rug, but since it was asked...

Fare tables for foreign-originating tickets are technically published in the currency of the origin (e.g. an ex-Korea fare table is in KRW). The exchange rates from NUC to local currency are updated and published periodically by IATA (pretty sure monthly), and in that table 1 NUC is always 1 USD (and the other currencies are whatever the market prices them as that day). The fare is always filed in NUC, but since the conversion rate is fixed this is a mostly meaningless distinction. However, if you want to purchase the fare in a different currency than the filing currency, the amount is converted to the purchase currency at today's market rate.

For example, imagine a one-way ICN-SFO fare that is KRW 750,000. On the first of the month (or whenever the NUC table is updated), lets say USD/KRW = 1200.00. Then the fare is filed as 625.00 NUC. If you buy the ticket with a Korean POS, you will always pay the KRW 750,000 fare. However, let's say you buy the ticket using a USA POS two weeks later, when the market rate is now USD/KRW = 1175.00. Now, you will actually pay KRW 750,000 * (1/1175.00) = USD 638.30 of base fare for the ticket, but it will earn 625 PQD.


This is only an issue for foreign-denominated fares which are purchased with USD; anything with a ticket origin in the USA is originally priced in USD so this effect is nil. I should add I'm only 99% sure PQD accrues to NUC (the preview suggests otherwise), but I do believe that's the case.