CLSA is pleased to announce top Korean music artists from YG Entertainment, Seven and Lexy, will be performing in Hong Kong tonight as feature acts of the Korea Wave celebration as part of the 12th annual CLSA Investors' Forum. "The wide appreciation of Korean pop culture in Asia is boosting Koreans' self-confidence at a time when the country is demonstrating global leadership in fields including displays, mobile handsets, semiconductors and cloning," said David Cotterchio, head of CLSA Korea. In addition to the performances, film and TV drama excerpts and presentations on the "Korean Wave" by experts as diverse as Korean movie producers and advertising executives will be the highlight of the conference, attended by 1,200 investors managing assets worth approximately US$4 trillion in funds under management. Executives from 22 Korean companies, including Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motors and Kookmin Bank will also take part, along with some 500 senior representatives of Asia's leading companies from around the region. Cotterchio added that this will be the first time the conference, which CLSA believes is the largest such investor event in Asia, will have a Korea-specific focus in its 12 year history. At approximately the same time the international press has been showing an interest in the Korean Wave, CLSA has noted a recent an upsurge of confidence in Korea. The KOSPI has traded at a 20-40 percent discount to Asia (ex-Japan) since 2000, mainly because domestic ownership of Korean stocks have declined dramatically. Investment Trust Companies, or ITCs, held about 20 percent of their assets in equity-type funds in September 1999, but from that point, ITCs aggressively sold down equity positions to below 4 percent by the first quarter. However, recent months have seen a dramatic reversal of this net-selling trend of the past 4.5 years as local ITCs have turned net buyers since the fourth quarter 2004 and August saw the largest inflow of ITC equity-type funds since March 2002 with US$1.36 trillion. "Korea is re-rating with local confidence in the stock market and Korean companies are the catalysts," said CLSA Korea's head of research, James Paterson. "While the 'Korea Wave' itself is not necessarily on investors' radar screens, we believe it is improving the overall perception of 'Brand Korea' around the region - and that holds all kinds of positive long-term connotations for firms and the economy."