Foreign holdings of S. Korean stocks hit new high in May

SEOUL, June 14 (Yonhap) -- Foreign investors remained net buyers of South Korean stocks for the sixth straight month in May, with their holdings of local stocks hitting a new high, data showed Wednesday.

Offshore investors were also net buyers of South Korean bonds in the past five months, according to the data by the Financial Supervisory Service.

Foreign investors snapped up a net 2.1 trillion won (US$1.8 billion) worth of South Korean stocks last month.

Foreigners held a total of 581.2 trillion won worth of South Korean stocks at the end of May, accounting for 32.9 percent of the nation's total market capitalization, the data showed.

Investors from the U.S., France and Singapore raised their holdings of South Korean stocks last month, while investors from China, Switzerland and Australia offloaded their holdings.

Last month, foreign investors raised their holdings of South Korean bonds by 2.1 trillion won.

As of the end of May, foreigners' holdings of South Korean debts stood at 102.2 trillion won, accounting for 6.2 percent of total bonds.
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