Seoul: Corporate share buybacks and retirements in South Korea have more than doubled since the implementation of the government's corporate value-up initiative, industry data revealed.

According to Yonhap News Agency, South Korean companies repurchased equities worth a total of 20.1 trillion won (USD$13.9 billion) and retired 21.4 trillion won worth of shares last year. These figures represent significant increases compared to 2023, when stock buybacks amounted to 8.2 trillion won and stocks retired stood at 4.8 trillion won.

Compared to 2024, the total value of repurchased stocks rose by 6.9 percent, and the value of retired stocks increased by 54 percent. The government's corporate value-up program, introduced in 2024, aims to enhance the local stock market by offering tax incentives to companies that voluntarily seek to increase shareholder value.

Furthermore, total cash dividends last year grew to 50.9 trillion won, marking an 11.1 percent rise on a year-on-year basis. Dividend payments showed a gradual increase from 43.1 trillion won in 2023 to 45.8 trillion won in 2024, as per the Korea Exchange (KRX) data.

Net assets in exchange-traded funds tracking the value-up index saw a substantial rise of 162.5 percent, reaching 1.3 trillion won. The KRX noted improvements in major stock market indexes, including the PER (price-to-earnings ratio) and PBR (price-to-book ratio), compared to 2024, indicating a reduction in the so-called Korea Discount.

As of the end of December, the MSCI Korea Index's PBR was 1.59 times, while the PER of the index was 17.47 times, according to the KRX.