S. Korea's corporate bond issuance expands in Feb.

SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's corporate bond issuance rose 10.5
percent in February from a month earlier on increased cash needs amid an economic
slowdown, the securities depository agency said Tuesday.

Local companies sold a combined 8.37 trillion won (US$5.28 billion) worth of debt
last month, compared with 7.57 trillion in January, the Korea Securities
Depository said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the companies paid back 2.19 trillion won worth of bonds last month,
bringing their net bond-selling to 6.18 trillion won, the fourth monthly net
issuance in a row, it said.
"The majority of the new bond selling is aimed at meeting companies' operating
expenses," it said.
pbr@yna.co.kr
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