Korean retail investors sharply increased purchases of U.S. stocks during a domestic market correction, with July net buying at about $4.5 billion, CNBC reported. SK Hynix ADRs drew about $840 million, ranking second in Koreans’ U.S. securities net buying, even though the shares are available at home. Arcadian Asset Management’s Owen Lamont said the ADR traded about 10 percent above the Korean shares and called the buying abnormal.

South Korea is reviewing measures to reverse the shift of retail investors into U.S. leveraged ETFs, including lifting the leverage limit for domestic ETFs from 2x to 3x and permitting single-stock leveraged products. Industry officials say holdings of U.S. stock leveraged ETFs by Korean individuals reached $15.6 billion as of November 2025. Authorities expect the steps could ease upward pressure on the won-dollar exchange rate, though critics warn of higher investor risk.