Korea’s stock market capitalization returned to the $1 trillion level for the first time in three years in 2010 as an economic recovery and corporate profit gains led to strong rallies, the bourse operator said Monday.
The country’s total market cap of its main board and the tech-heavy junior market reached $1.92 trillion at the end of 2010, up 30.8 percent from a year earlier, the Korea Exchange said, citing data from the World Federation of Exchanges.
Korea Exchange officials rejoice as Seoul stocks open higher Monday after a five-day closure during the Lunar New Year holidays. (Park Hyun-koo/The Korea )Herald
It was the first year-end reading over the $1 trillion milestone since the $1.12 trillion seen at the end of 2007 before the global financial crisis pummeled global stock markets, the KRX said.
As of end-2010, Korea accounted for 1.99 percent of the total world stock market cap, ranking as the 17th-largest bourse in the world, the KRX said.
The total global market cap stood at $54.9 trillion as of the end of last year, 14.9 percent more than a year earlier, according to the local bourse operator. The global figure marks the highest level since 2007 when the world market cap hit an all-time high of $60.9 trillion, it added.
(Yonhap News)
