More than US$18 billion worth of European funds left the Korean market last year due to financial woes facing many eurozone economies.

The Bank of Korea reported Tuesday that European investors pulled the hefty sum from the local bourse last year, contributing to a net outflow of more than $10 billion in stock investment.

Despite the withdrawal of funds, the European Union still accounted for more than 28 percent of all inbound investments last year, which was higher than 27 percent for the United States and 18 percent for Southeast Asian countries.