S. Korea's direct financing down 37.5 pct in Aug.

SEOUL, Sept. 24 (Yonhap) -- South Korean companies' direct financing plunged 37.5 percent in August from the previous month as they resorted less to the stock and bond markets to raise money, the nation's financial watchdog said Thursday.

Local firms and banks raised a total of 6.43 trillion won (US$5.4 billion) by
selling stocks and bonds last month, compared with 10.3 trillion won in July,
according to the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS).
The tumble in August direct financing comes as companies turned less to the
capital market after massive direct funding in the first half of this year. Local
firms had scurried to raise money to secure working capital in the grip of a
global economic slowdown.
In August, debt sales amounted to 5.6 trillion won, down 40 percent from a month
earlier, and stock floating dropped 20 percent to 814 billion won, the FSS said.
pbr@yna.co.kr
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