S. Korea's Exchange-traded Funds (ETFs) Market Turnover 3rd Largest In World

The daily turnover of South Korean exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has surged to become the third largest in the world 16 years after their launch, the bourse operator here said Wednesday

SEOUL, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Apr, 2018 ) :The daily turnover of South Korean exchange-traded funds (ETFs) has surged to become the third largest in the world 16 years after their launch, the bourse operator here said Wednesday.

As of the end of February, the turnover numbers stood at US$1.6 billion, trailing only $112.9 billion for the United States and $2.7 billion for Japan, according to the Korea Exchange (KRX). The daily trading volume so far this year marked a 91 percent increase from the previous year, it added.

Currently, a total of 353 ETFs are available on the market, a big jump from four products at the time of the market launch in 2002, according to the KRX. Representing a basket of stocks that reflect an index, an ETF can be traded on stock exchanges.

The very feature allows more flexibility in making investments and leeway for risk-hedging.

The combined net assets of the country's ETFs stood slightly above 40 trillion won (US$37.49 billion) as of the end of Tuesday, making South Korea the 10th-biggest market in terms of assets value.

Compared with 2002, their net value jumped 116.43 times. KRX said that over the past decade, the ETF market has expanded 31 percent per year on average, far faster than the global average of 19 percent.

"We will strive, together with business entities, to further develop the ETF market to provide people with stable tools for property increase," the exchange operator said in a statement. "More fund products will be rolled out, including those reserved for the KOSDAQ market investment."