South Korean Retail Investors' U.S. Stock Purchases Surge 4x in One Month to $28.8B

According to Korea Securities Depository, South Korean retail investors' net purchases of U.S. stocks reached $28.788 billion from July 1-21, surging four-fold from June's $6.33 billion, as domestic KOSPI volatility prompted capital outflows.

The shift reflects mounting unease with local market swings—Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have fallen over 30% from recent peaks amid semiconductor weakness concerns. Meanwhile, investor fund deposits fell approximately 8 trillion Korean won, with capital redirected to U.S. markets. Investment preferences have also shifted from large-cap tech stocks to AI semiconductor stocks and leveraged ETFs such as Direxion Daily Semiconductors Bull 3X (SOXL), which topped retail buy rankings for July.