In the previous month, domestic Government Bonds yields rose across all maturities as expectations for a rate cut faded after the Bank of Korea's monetary policy committee kept the benchmark rate unchanged at 2.5%.
Korea Financial Investment Association stated accordingly on Dec. 11 through "Over-the-counter bond market trends in Nov. 2025." At the end of November, the Treasury bond yield for the three-year note was 2.991%, up 27.5 basis points (1bp=0.01 percentage point) from a month earlier.
The five-year yield rose 32.1 basis points to 3.176%, and the 10-year yield rose 28.3 basis points over the same period to 3.344%. Ultra-long maturities, the 30-year and 50-year, also climbed 23.5 basis points and 35.9 basis points, respectively.
Foreign investors' selling of Government Bonds futures and the high volume of Government Bonds issuance also drove yields higher. In addition, with a U.S. government shutdown halting the release of key economic indicators and institutions preparing to close their books ahead of year-end, reduced Government Bonds purchases also pushed yields up.
The bond issuance volume last month totaled 85.8 trillion won. That was an increase of 8.3 trillion won from October. While corporate bond issuance decreased ahead of year-end settlement of account, issuance of Government Bonds, special-purpose bonds, and financial bonds increased, lifting the overall issuance volume.
There were 15 corporate bond book-buildings last month, totaling 1.3 trillion won. That was down 921 billion won from the same period a year earlier. Over the same period, the amount participating in book-building also fell 1.684 trillion won to 4.078 trillion won.
In the over-the-counter bond market, last month's bond transaction volume was 455.3 trillion won, up 93.1 trillion won from October. Centered on Government Bonds, trading volume increased due to a base effect from October, when distribution and issuance were sharply lower because of long holidays.
By investor type, transactions among securities firms, banks, insurers, and asset managers all increased from the previous month. Foreign investors were net buyers of a total of 20.4 trillion won, and individuals made a net purchase of 2.2 trillion won, including Government Bonds.