Foreigners net purchase Korean stocks, bonds in Jan.

SEOUL, Feb. 12 (Yonhap) -- Foreign investors snapped a three-month selling streak to net purchase South Korean stocks and bonds in January, central bank data showed Wednesday.

Foreigners net purchased US$4.43 billion worth of local stocks and bonds in the month, compared with a net selling of $270 million the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).

The amount is the highest since June 2019, when foreigners net bought $4.78 billion.

Foreign investors scooped up a net $370 million worth of South Korean stocks in January, down from $660 million a month before.

However, they purchased a net $4.06 billion in local bonds, becoming net buyers for the first time in four months.

The increase in foreign investment apparently comes amid an improved outlook for the local economy, which is estimated to grow 2.3 percent this year, rebounding from a 2.0 percent on-year expansion in 2019 that was the slowest growth in a decade.

The outbreak of the new coronavirus may yet delay the country's economic recovery, with the BOK noting the increase in foreign stock investment may have narrowed due to the outbreak.

Meanwhile, the BOK said the daily foreign exchange (FX) turnover between banks came to $26.56 billion last month, up $510 million from the month before.

The daily average FX spot trading rose $2.27 billion to $10.23 billion over the cited period, while exchanges of FX derivatives slipped $160 million to $2.39 billion.

bdk@yna.co.kr
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