South Korean Individual Investors Net Purchase $87.63M in U.S. Stocks in July as Domestic Deposit Balances Shrink by 27 Trillion Won

According to Korea Depository & Transfer Company, South Korean individual investors net purchased $87.63 million in U.S. stocks during the first nine trading days of July, marking the second consecutive month of net buying. Domestic stock deposit balances fell from 136 trillion won on June 24 to 109 trillion won by July 13, a decline of approximately 27 trillion won.

The capital reallocation reflects growing frustration with heightened volatility in the Korean market. Individual investors have increasingly targeted U.S. semiconductor stocks, with the Direxion Daily Semiconductors Bull 3X ETF (SOXL) becoming the most widely purchased U.S. equity among Korean retail traders in July. Meanwhile, weekly net purchases of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix domestically declined sharply, with Samsung's net buying halving from 5.06 trillion won in the first week to 2.18 trillion won in the second week.