South korea: South Korea's overseas financial assets reached a new record high in the first quarter, propelled by increased direct investments in the United States, as indicated by central bank data.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the country's external financial assets were valued at US$2.88 trillion as of the end of March, reflecting an increase of $15 billion from the previous quarter. This amount marks the highest ever recorded, even though the growth pace decelerated compared to the $105 billion increase in the fourth quarter.

Within the external financial assets, direct investment showed a rise of $15.4 billion, reaching $851.7 billion, largely due to heightened investments in the United States. On the other hand, residents' securities investments experienced a decline of $15.1 billion on a quarterly basis, amounting to $1.24 trillion by the end of March, attributed to struggles in the U.S. stock market during the first quarter.

External financial liabilities also saw an increase, rising by 147.1 billion won to a record $2.13 trillion, as foreign investments in domestic securities surged in response to significant increases in local stock prices. Non-residents' securities investment grew by $108.3 billion to $1.47 trillion, while direct investment decreased by $1.3 billion to $320.7 billion.

The faster increase in external financial liabilities compared to external financial assets led to a decline in South Korea's net international investment position, which fell by $132.1 billion year-on-year to $753.6 billion.