Foreigners snap 7-month sell-offs of Korean stocks in August

Foreign investors ended their seven-month streak of selling Korean stocks in August, driven by ongoing geopolitical concerns and doubts about the profitability of artificial intelligence (AI), according to data released on Friday. Offshore investors purchased a net 340 billion won worth of local stocks during the month, marking the first time in seven consecutive months they engaged in net buying rather than selling.

Following their acquisitions in August, offshore investors now hold 2,281 trillion won worth of local stocks, representing 34.8 percent of the total market capitalization. The United States led the buying spree, netting a purchase of 13.4 trillion won, followed by Ireland with 3.2 trillion won. Meanwhile, the local bond market saw foreign investors selling a net 3.94 trillion won worth of local debt last month.

Their overall holdings of Korean bonds reached 330 trillion won by the end of August, comprising 11.4 percent of listed bonds on the market, as reported by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).