Foreigners remain net buyers of S. Korean stocks in October

SEOUL, Nov. 9 (Yonhap) -- Foreign investors remained net buyers of South Korean stocks in October, extending their buying spree for a second consecutive month, partly thanks to the weak U.S. dollar, data showed Monday.

Foreigners bought a net 1.35 trillion won (US$1.2 billion) worth of local stocks in October, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).

British investors net purchased 1.3 trillion won worth of stocks, while American investors sold a net 800 billion won worth of stocks last month, according to the FSS.

As of end-October, local stocks held by foreign investors came to 584.8 trillion won, accounting for 30.4 percent of South Korea's market capitalization.

By country, investors from the United States held 243.7 trillion won worth of local stocks at the end of last month, accounting for 41.7 percent of the total held by offshore investors, followed by those from Britain with 7.6 percent and Luxembourg with 6.7 percent.

Foreigners also bought a net 208 billion won worth of local bonds last month.

Their bond holdings hit 150.7 trillion won, or 7.4 percent of the total, as of end-October, the data showed.

kdh@yna.co.kr
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