Seoul, Jan 25 (IANS) Foreign ownership of South Korean stocks as a share of total market capitalisation reached its highest level in five years and nine months in January, driven by net purchases in the shipbuilding, defence and nuclear power industries, the main bourse operator said on Sunday.

Foreigners’ stock holdings rose to 37.18 per cent of total market capitalisation on January 7, the highest level since April 9, 2020, when the rate was at 37.34 percent, according to data from the Korea Exchange (KRX), reports Yonhap news agency.

The increase largely came as offshore investors scooped up shares in the semiconductor sector in the second half of last year, followed by shares in the shipbuilding, defence and nuclear power sectors this month.

Foreign investors net purchased 14.1 trillion won (US$9.7 billion) worth of Samsung Electronics shares in the second half of last year alone.

This month, the most popular shares were Hanwha Ocean, Doosan Enerbility and Naver, in that order.

Investments in the shipbuilding and nuclear power sectors were driven by anticipation of large-scale orders amid an increase in global demand, while those in the defence industry were likely buoyed by the tension surrounding U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to acquire Greenland.

Meanwhile, South Korean stocks closed higher on Friday at a fresh peak, led by gains in technology and brokerage shares, after hitting another intraday record high. The Korean won increased against the U.S. dollar.

After a choppy session, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) went up 37.54 points, or 0.76 percent, to close at 4,990.07.

Trade volume was heavy at 595.6 million shares worth 29.6 trillion won (US$20.2 billion), with winners far outpacing losers 677 to 212.

Institutions and foreigners purchased 491.2 billion won and 133.3 billion won worth of stocks, respectively, while individual investors offloaded a net 725.6 billion won alone.

The index opened sharply higher, briefly breaching the 5,000-point threshold for the second consecutive session and reaching an intraday record of 5,021.13.

—IANS

na/