Foreigners Make Net Stock Purchases for First Time in Eight Months; Withdraw KRW 4.7 Trillion from Bonds

[Financial News] Foreign investors made net purchases of domestically listed stocks last month for the first time in eight months. However, they withdrew more than KRW 4.7 trillion from listed bonds, resulting in a net outflow of funds invested in all listed securities.
■ United States Funds Make KRW 13 Trillion in Stock PurchasesAccording to the Financial Supervisory Service's report on "August 2026 Foreign Securities Investment Trends," released on the 18th, foreign investors made net purchases of KRW 344 billion worth of listed stocks last month. This marked a shift to net buying for the first time in eight months since December last year.
Flows differed by market. Foreign investors made net purchases of KRW 1.888 trillion on the Korea Exchange Main Board, but made net sales of KRW 1.545 trillion on the KOSDAQ market.
By region, investors from the Americas made net purchases of KRW 13.408 trillion. Europe recorded net sales of KRW 10.731 trillion, while KRW 1.24 trillion and KRW 400 billion flowed out of Asia and the Middle East, respectively.
By country, investors from the United States made net purchases of KRW 13.382 trillion, the largest amount. Investors from Ireland and Luxembourg also purchased KRW 3.205 trillion and KRW 2.34 trillion, respectively. In contrast, investors from the United Kingdom made net sales of KRW 16.895 trillion, while net outflows from the Cayman Islands and Hong Kong totaled KRW 2.718 trillion and KRW 1.815 trillion, respectively.
As of the end of August, foreign investors held KRW 2,280.6 trillion worth of domestically listed stocks, up KRW 25.1 trillion from the previous month. This represented 34.8% of the total market capitalization. By country, investors from the United States held KRW 999.7 trillion, accounting for 43.8% of foreign investors' total holdings. Holdings by investors from Europe and Asia stood at KRW 676.9 trillion and KRW 312.8 trillion, respectively.
■ Bond Market Sees Net Withdrawals for First Time in Four MonthsForeign investors shifted to net withdrawals in the bond market after four months. They made net sales of KRW 3.935 trillion in listed bonds last month and received KRW 801 billion in maturity repayments, withdrawing KRW 4.736 trillion in total.
By bond type, net outflows totaled KRW 3.527 trillion from government bonds and KRW 1.221 trillion from special bonds. By remaining maturity, investors made net withdrawals of KRW 6.265 trillion from bonds with less than one year remaining and withdrew KRW 601 billion from bonds with maturities of one to less than five years. In contrast, they made net investments of KRW 2.13 trillion in long-term bonds with maturities of five years or more.
At the end of August, foreign investors' holdings of listed bonds had fallen by KRW 5.8 trillion from the previous month to KRW 330.3 trillion, accounting for 11.4% of total outstanding listed bonds. Their combined holdings of domestic listed stocks and bonds totaled KRW 2,610.9 trillion.
Although foreign investors made net purchases of KRW 344 billion in stocks last month, they made net withdrawals of KRW 4.736 trillion from bonds, resulting in net withdrawals of KRW 4.392 trillion from all listed securities.

[email protected] Lee Jeong-hwa Reporter