Korea's key stock index has increased nearly 9 percent this year, backed by upgrades of the country's sovereign credit ratings amid the global economic slowdown, data showed Friday.
The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index closed at 1,987.35 on Thursday, up 8.9 percent from the start of the year, according to the data released by the main bourse operator Korea Exchange (KRX).
The increase caused the total capitalization of the main stock market to move up to 1,148 trillion won ($1,071 billion) from 1,042 trillion won.
The combined market cap of the country's top 10 conglomerates gained 117 trillion won to 755 trillion won. Samsung Group added 28.5 percent to 334.1 trillion won, while SK Group increased 51 percent to 68.3 trillion won.
Leading steelmaker POSCO and the world's top shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., on the other hand, were among the biggest losers.
Such top 10 groups accounted for 60.1 percent of the combined market capitalization of the main bourse this year, up 4.5 percentage points from the beginning of the year, the data showed.
Foreign investors turned to a net buying of 17.5 trillion won worth of shares on the main bourse, while institutions scooped up 3.9 trillion won.
Retail investors, on the other hand, offloaded 15.4 trillion won for the fourth consecutive year on the protracted economic slowdown, the data added.
The KRX said the gain in the key stock index was attributable to the country's improved sovereign ratings, although the global economic slowdown, including the eurozone financial crisis, limited the growth.
In September, three major global credit appraisers -- Moody's, Fitch and Standard & Poor's -- raised their credit ratings on South Korea to levels seen before the 1997-1998 financial crisis, citing the country's fiscal soundness and lowered geopolitical risks.
Meanwhile, the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index, or the KOSPI, closed 0.49 percent higher to 1997.05 on Friday, the last trading session of the year.(Yonhap).
