April 27, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Foreign investors were net sellers on Korean stock market last month, while their holdings of local bonds hit an all-time high, data showed on June 18.

Offshore investors offloaded a net 380 billion won (US$344.27 million) worth of local stocks in May, extending their selling mode to a second straight month, according to data from the Financial Supervisory Service.

By nation, investors from Britain shed 1.7 trillion won worth of local equities, followed by 400 billion sold by Swiss investors and 200 billion won by Saudi Arabia. Investors from the United States bought 1.8 trillion won worth of shares with Canada and Australia picking up shares worth 200 billion won each, according to the data.

Combined, foreign investors held 623.9 trillion won worth of local stocks at the end of May, accounting for 31.9 percent of the market capitalization.

Of the total, the US accounted for 41.6 percent, or 259.5 trillion won of shares, followed by Britain with 7.7 percent, Luxemburg with 6.4 percent and Singapore with 5.0 percent, according to the FSS.

In contrast, foreigners were net buyers of local bonds, extending the buying mode for a fifth straight month. They poured another 3.27 trillion won into the bond market in May, the largest amount for this year, the latest data showed.

Their holdings of local debt stood at 108.4 trillion won, or 6.3 percent of the total, at the end of last month, reaching a new record high, according to the financial regulator.

By Song Seung-hyun and newswires (ssh@heraldcorp.com)