fund assets-Q1 tally

Funds' net asset value gains over 8 pct in Q1

SEOUL, April 30 (Yonhap) -- The value of South Korea's investment funds rose more than 8 percent in the first quarter of this year from three months earlier, driven by an increase in investment funds traded on stock exchanges, data showed Thursday.

The net asset value of South Korean investment funds came to 1,493.9 trillion won (US$1 trillion) as of end-March, up 8.5 percent from three months earlier, according to the data from the Korea Financial Investment Association (KOFIA).

The gain came as net assets of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) jumped 21.4 percent from three months earlier to 360 trillion won.

The tally of ETFs is the highest on record since the investment vehicle launched in the local stock market in 2002.

An ETF refers to an investment fund traded on stock exchanges and invests in a basket of stocks that track an index or commodities and bonds.

The rapid growth of the ETF market has largely been helped by a continued capital inflow as investors capitalized on low brokerage fees and stable returns.

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