SEOUL, The value of investment funds in South Korea grew from a year earlier in 2023, data showed Monday.

The net asset value of South Korean investment funds came to 971.4 trillion won (US$737.6 billion) as of the end of last year, up 68.1 trillion won from a year before, according to the data from the Korea Financial Investment Association.

“Interest rates remained high throughout the year, making bond products more attractive,” it said in a press release. The country’s central bank has kept its policy rate frozen at 3.5 percent since January 2023.

The net assets of bond funds stood at 138.2 trillion won as of end-2023, up 21.6 trillion won, or 18.5 percent, from a year earlier, while those of public funds surged 23 percent to 348.3 trillion won over the cited period, marking a turnaround from a 9.3 percent on-year decline in 2022.

The net assets of equity funds increased 53.9 trillion won, or 9.5 percent, over the cited period to 623.1 trillion won.

Source: Yonhap News Agency