Foreign Investors Retreat from South Korean Stocks

(MENAFN) Foreign investors retreated from South Korean equities in January, unloading shares worth 98.0 billion won ($67.9 million) in a profit-taking move following the previous month's buying spree, regulatory data revealed Friday.

Offshore market participants reversed course to become net sellers of domestic equities last month after accumulating positions in December, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) reported.

The foreign selloff showed divergent patterns across exchanges—international traders continued purchasing on the benchmark KOSPI while dumping holdings in the tech-heavy KOSDAQ market.

Total foreign ownership of Korean-listed equities stood at 1,701.4 trillion won by month's end, representing 32.0 percent of overall market capitalization.

In a contrasting shift, overseas investors poured 7.07 trillion won into domestic bonds during January. Accounting for 3.51 trillion won in debt redemptions, the actual net foreign investment in Korea's bond market reached 3.56 trillion won.

Foreign holdings of Korean-listed bonds totaled 330.5 trillion won at January's close, comprising 11.9 percent of the nation's total listed debt securities.

The mixed flows underscore selective positioning by international capital as investors navigate Asia's fourth-largest economy. (1 won equals 0.00069 U.S. dollars)

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