South Koreans resume yearslong trend of buying US stocks
Recent markets rout unlikely to deter Korean buying of US stocks
Koreans hold Tesla the most, followed by Nvidia and Apple
Retail selloff in the domestic market biggest on record

SEOUL, Aug 14 Reuters South Korea39;s momandpop investors are defying last week39;s global financial markets rout by pouring even more funds into U.S. stocks, a yearslong trend that analysts and investors bet will continue due to the depressed value proposition at home.

South Korean retailers have been scooping up Nvidia, Tesla Inc. and Apple shares this year fuelled in part by the worldwide AIfrenzy, a move that comes despite government efforts to boost the domestic stock market.

Sunny Noh, a 49yearold who has been investing in Tesla since 2020 and now holds about 85 of his financial assets in the electricvehicle maker, said he sees the recent market plunge as a longterm buying opportunity.

It can fall in a year or two, but it will rise again in the longer term of 10 years, he said.

Retailers like Noh have been frustrated by the socalled Korea discount of lower shareholder returns and depressed valuations in the 1.8 trillion stock market, home to global tech titans like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix and automakers such as Hyundai Motor.

For South Korean listed companies, the last 10year ratio of dividend payment to net income, for instance, stood at an average of 26, lower than 55 in Taiwan, 36 in Japan and 42 in the U.S.,…