Seoul [South Korea], March 2: South Korean institutions' investment in foreign securities rose 8.4 percent last year from a year earlier to reach a record high, driven by increased stock investments and investment returns, central bank data showed.
The outstanding value of foreign securities held by local institutional investors rose by US$32.58 billion from a year earlier to $420.33 billion as of end-December, marking the largest amount ever, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).
Foreign securities include stocks, bonds and "Korean paper," which refers to foreign currency-denominated securities issued by the South Korean government, banks and companies in overseas markets.
"The growth was attributable to investment returns led by solid economic growth in the United States and earnings of artificial intelligence (AI) and semiconductor companies, as well as an increase in their fresh investments," a bank official said as quoted by Yonhap.
Institutions' investment in foreign stocks advanced $29.3 billion on-year to $226.21 billion, while the value of their foreign bond holdings climbed $1.29 billion to $163.89 billion, the data showed.
Source: Emirates News Agency
