Foreign Investors Snapped Up South Korean Stocks, Bonds Ahead of Election

By Kwanwoo Jun

Foreign investors ended a 10-month net selling streak of South Korean stocks and accelerated purchases of local bonds last month, Seoul's Financial Supervisory Service said.

The shift occurred in the run-up to the country's early June presidential election that capped months of political unrest triggered by a short-lived declaration of martial law.

Offshore investors bought a net 2.010 trillion won, equivalent to $1.47 billion, of locally listed stocks in May after being net sellers for 10 straight months, the FSS said in a statement released Thursday. In April, they sold a net 13.592 trillion won of South Korean equities.

Overseas investors also piled into the nation's bonds at an accelerated pace, snapping up a net 11.337 trillion won of listed bonds last month following net purchases of 11.259 trillion won in April.

In May, foreign investors' stock holdings accounted for 26.7% of the country's total market capitalization, while their bond holdings represented 11.2% of the total listed bonds.

Write to Kwanwoo Jun at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

06-12-25 0220ET