Foreigners become net buyers of Korean stocks in November, end 3-month selling streak

Pictured is the Financial Supervisory Service headquarters in Yeouido, western Seoul. [YONHAP]

Foreign investors of Korean stocks were net buyers last month after three months of being net sellers, having purchased a net 3.3 trillion won ($2.5 billion) worth of stocks in November.

They net sold 1.18 trillion won worth of shares in August, followed by a net selling of 1.7 trillion won in September and 3.1 trillion won in October, according to data from the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) on Thursday.

In November, investors from Britain purchased a net 3.48 trillion won worth of shares, while U.S. investors purchased a net 763 billion won. Malaysian investors sold a net 218 billion won, with those from Saudi Arabia net selling 184 billion won.

As of the end of November, Korean stocks held by foreign investors amounted to 692.2 trillion won, accounting for 26.9 percent of the country's market capitalization. The reading dropped slightly from 27.2 percent tallied a month earlier, according to the FSS.

Foreign investors purchased a net 5.37 trillion won worth of Korean bonds in November, also becoming net buyers after a three-month selling streak.

Their bond holdings stood at 244.1 trillion won as of the end of November, which marked a 2.5 trillion won rise from a month before while accounting for 9.8 percent of all outstanding bonds in the country.

BY KIM JU-YEON, YONHAP [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]