SEOUL, Feb 4: Foreigners pulled money out of South Korea’s stock market for a second straight month in January, data from the country’s financial regulator showed on Wednesday, but the outflows were less than half the previous month. Offshore investors sold a net 0.9 trillion won ($824.02 million) worth of local shares in January, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) said in a statement, compared to net sales of 1.9 trillion won seen in December. Those in the U.K. offloaded the most, selling a net 1.4 trillion won worth of South Korean stocks last month, followed by Norway and Hong Kong.
Market players moved away from risky assets in January, extending a trend seen late last year amid turbulence in global financial markets. Many investors sought safety in government debt.
The FSS data showed foreigners raised their holdings in South Korean bonds in January by 55 billion won, after lowering them by 117 billion won in December, to 100.4 trillion won as of the end of January.
Investors in China placed the most money into South Korean bonds in January, raising their investment by 711 billion won and boosting their holdings for a sixth straight month. As of end-January, foreigners held 31.2 percent of local stocks and 6.8 percent of all South Korean bonds. (AGENCIES)
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