Foreign investors net buyers of Korean stocks for 3rd straight month
Han-Gyeol Seon
Feb 15, 2024 (Gmt+09:00)
Foreign investors bought more South Korean stocks and bonds in January, extending their buying spree to three months.
The Financial Supervisory Service of Korea said on Thursday that foreigners bought a net 3,353 billion won ($2.51 billion) of listed stocks last month. They invested 809 billion won ($607 million) in listed bonds.
As of the end of last month, foreigners held 704 trillion won ($528 billion) of listed stocks. That was 27.6% of the total market value.
They purchased a net 3,567 billion won ($2.67 billion) of stocks on the main Kospi market and sold a net 214 billion won ($160 million) on the smaller Kosdaq market.
By country, the UK($2.4 billion) and the US ($525 million) recorded net buying, while Saudi Arabia ($900 million) and Luxembourg ($375 million) showed net selling.
In the bond market, foreigners net-purchased 3,427 billion won ($2.57 billion) in listed bonds, and received 2,618 billion won ($1.96 billion) in maturing bonds, resulting in a total net investment of 809 billion won ($607 million).
They made net investments in government bonds ($450 million) and monetary stabilization bonds ($150 million). Foreigners held 245.4 trillion won ($184 billion) in listed bond market capitalization, which accounts for 9.8% of the total.