Lee pledges capital market reform to address stock undervaluation

President Lee Jae Myung reaffirmed his dedication to capital market reform on November 13, emphasizing the need to tackle the undervaluation of South Korean stocks. The pledge was made during a policy discussion at the Korea Exchange, attended by experts, corporate representatives, and government officials.

Lee characterized the undervaluation as an "unreasonable abnormality," signaling his administration's firm commitment to reforming the capital market and financial markets to bolster investor confidence. In recent months, the stock market has experienced considerable volatility, with the KOSPI trading around the 5,000-point mark, after hitting a record high of 9,114.55 points in late June.

The president highlighted investor confidence as the cornerstone of a healthy capital market, vowing to restore it through institutional reforms and measures to address market irregularities. Concerns about potential geopolitical crises, including the possibility of gunfire along the ceasefire line, were mentioned by Lee. He stressed that removing such worries and restoring trust would be paramount.

While acknowledging the government's efforts to address unfair trading practices and abuses by major shareholders, Lee acknowledged that significant progress remains to be made. He stated that the government is rigorously responding to unfair practices, such as stock price manipulation, at the pan-government level, and has instructed an investigative body to crack down on these irregularities in the financial and capital markets.