Rights offerings by South Korea’s listed companies plunged 40.6 percent in 2012 from a year earlier mainly due to the protracted global economic slowdown, the securities depository agency said Sunday.

The value of rights issues by 189 listed firms reached 7.7 trillion won ($7.3 billion) last year, compared to 13 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the data by the Korea Securities Depository.

The decrease came as the prolonged economic slowdown, including the eurozone fiscal crisis, made local firms reluctant to increase capital through new share offerings, the KSD said.

Rights offerings by companies listed on the main bourse nosedived 43 percent last year, and share sales by those registered on the secondary market plunged 22.7 percent, according to the data.

The number of firms seeking rights offerings also declined 16.4 percent on-year, while the combined number of issuance edged up 9.2 percent to 2.3 billion shares, the KSD added. (Yonhap News)