À̹ÌÁö È®´ë [Photo by Yonhap]
The outstanding balance in margin accounts has topped $9 billion in South Korea as retailers continued with credit-financing stock investment since the bargain-hunting momentum during the COVID-19 turmoil.
According to the Korea Financial Investment Association on Friday, the outstanding loan balance on margin accounts reached 11.05 trillion won ($9.08 billion) as of June 3, exceeding 11 trillion won for the first time since October 12, 2018.
Outstanding balance on margin accounts usually goes up when retail investors borrow money from brokerages to buy stocks on expectations of making money through the gap from stock gains.
À̹ÌÁö È®´ë The balance slipped to 6 trillion won level in March amid financial market rout triggered by concerns over the economic fallout from the fast spread of COVID-19 across the world. But since March 26, it has been on the rise thanks to a slew of measures introduced by major economies to combat against the virus-driven economic crisis.
The country¡¯s benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (Kospi) rallied Thursday to recover over 2,150 for the first time since Feb. 21 after gaining for five straight trading days. The index on Friday closed 1.43 percent higher at 2,181.87 in Seoul.
By Pulse
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