SEOUL, February 06 (AJP) - South Korean purchases of overseas stocks tripled from a year earlier to a record high last year, nearly matching the country’s record current account surplus, according to central bank data released on Friday.
Preliminary balance-of-payments figures from the Bank of Korea (BOK) showed South Korean residents bought $114.3 billion worth of foreign equities in 2025, up $72.2 billion from the previous year. That amounted to 92.9 percent of the country’s record current account surplus of $123 billion.
By investor type, asset managers, securities firms and insurers accounted for $42.1 billion in overseas equity purchases, while public institutions, including the National Pension Service, bought $40.7 billion. Individual investors purchased $31.4 billion in foreign stocks.
However, when overseas exchange-traded fund investments made through asset managers are included, total direct and indirect overseas equity investment by individuals is estimated to exceed that of public institutions, Kim Young-hwan, head of the BOK’s Economic Statistics Department, said.
The central bank views the trend as a structural factor influencing the won's weakness. Kim said the surge in overseas stock investment last year “offset a significant portion” of the impact stemming from the large current account surplus, Kim said.
* This article, published by Aju Business Daily, was translated by AI and edited by AJP.
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