Listed firms in South Korea purchased a record amount of their own stocks last year on the back of the government's corporate value-up scheme that launched in June, data showed on Thursday.
According to the bourse operator Korea Exchange, treasury stock purchase reached a record high of 18.8 trillion won ($12.9 billion) last year, sharply up from the previous year's 8.2 trillion won.
The data also showed that a record amount of treasury stocks worth 13.9 trillion won were canceled last year, sharply up from 4.8 trillion won the previous year.
Listed firms also delivered 45.8 trillion won in cash dividends last year, up 6.3 percent from the previous year.
According to the KRX, a total of 102 companies made filings over their value-up schemes last year. (Yonhap)
