Led by Institutional Investors
The Korea Exchange announced on July 9 that the local exchange-traded fund (ETF) market reached a record size based on institutional investors’ participation. Specifically, the market posted a total net asset value of 27 trillion won with the number of listed ETFs reaching 283 in the first half of this year. The figures rose by 8.7% and 10.5% in just six months, respectively.
The growth of the local ETF market was led by institutional investors as mentioned above. These days, banks, insurers and pension funds are increasing their investment in the market. Korea Post’s ETF-based arbitrage trading started on April 28 to add to the volume, too.
In the first half of this year, the average daily volume of ETF trading by institutional investors increased by more than 44 billion won and reached 197.4 billion won.
The Korea Exchange is planning to expand its lineup of ETFs covering overseas underlying assets. “We are planning to provide more emerging market ETFs so that investors can invest in emerging markets with greater ease,” it explained, adding, “At the same time, we will launch more sector-specific and currency ETFs as our strategic overseas ETFs.”