Seoul: The number of South Korean companies with a market capitalization exceeding 1 trillion won (US$692.1 million) surged by 13 percent in less than two months since the beginning of the year, fueled by a continued stock rally, industry data indicated on Wednesday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, as of Friday, 365 companies listed on the local stock market boasted a market valuation of over 1 trillion won, marking an increase of 42 from the end of last year. The data, sourced from the Korea Exchange and Yonhap Infomax, revealed that 249 of these firms are on the benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), while 116 are on the smaller KOSDAQ bourse.

Additionally, the number of companies surpassing the 10 trillion won mark rose to 74, up from the previous count of 62. The majority of these were listed on the KOSPI, with six hailing from the KOSDAQ.

The rapid growth of companies with market caps exceeding 1 trillion won was largely attributed to the robust, ongoing rally of the local stock market this year. Notably, the KOSPI closed at 5,507.01 on Friday, reflecting a 30.68 percent increase from 4,214.17 at the end of last year, while the smaller index experienced a 19.52 percent rise during the same period.