Minister of Health and Welfare Kwon Deok-cheol (right) is speaking at the 3rd National Pension Fund Steering Committee held at the Westin Chosun Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 26th. Behind Minister Kwon, members of labor and civil society organizations, such as the Participation Solidarity, are condemning the fund management headquarters and the national pension decision-making structure, and are making pickets. News 1
The National Pension Service decided not to adjust the share of domestic stock investment, but decided to discuss it at the next meeting. The Ministry of Health and Welfare held the National Pension Fund Management Committee on the 26th and made this decision. The Ministry of Health and Welfare said, “It has not been decided whether to change the allowable range of domestic stocks, and the next fund management committee will discuss it again.” Although I did not set a schedule for the next meeting, it is clear that it has passed since the 4.7 re-election.
At this meeting, the Fund Management Committee discussed the issue of raising the allowable range of strategic asset allocation of the National Pension from ±2% points to ±3% points or more. The allowable range of strategic asset allocation refers to a provision that can reduce or expand the proportion of investment within ±2% according to market conditions. Currently, the share of domestic stock investment is 16.8%. If the current allowable range is applied, it can be invested up to 18.8%, and if it is increased to ±3%, it can be increased to 19.8%.
As the domestic stock market soared at the end of last year, the share of domestic stock investment in the national pension soared to 21.2%. To lower this, the National Pension Service Fund Management Headquarters sold stocks consecutively for 51 business days from December 24th to 12th last year. Because of this, individual investors criticized “it is pouring cold water on the boom.” The National Pension Plan pushed forward a plan to expand the allowable range of discretionary rights (2 percentage points) without touching the share of domestic stock investment (16.8%) due to market pressure.
However, on the 24th, the Practical Evaluation Committee met with opposition. It is known that the opinion of Shilpyeongwi was strong that “there is a need for adjustment, but it should be carefully timed.” Raising the allowable range could lead to succumbing to the pressure of individual investors ahead of the election, and could be criticized for making a political choice for the National Pension Service. It seems that this was taken into account at the meeting of the Fund Management Committee on the 26th.
Minister of Welfare Kwon Deok-cheol met with reporters right after the Fund Management Committee on this day and said, “There was a lot of consensus on the need for review, but sufficient research and review on the timing, scale, and degree of adjustment were needed, and the relationship with the market situation and the adjustment of tactical asset allocation were further reviewed. There were many opinions that it should be done, so I decided to discuss it again at the next fund.” As for the next fundraising date, he said, “It has not been set, but we will prepare for discussions in April.”
When the National Pension Plan confirmed its medium-term asset allocation plan in May last year, it decided to reduce the share of domestic stock investment to 15% by 2025. Nevertheless, it seems difficult to avoid criticism of violating self-made policies if the proportion of domestic stocks increases.
Reporter Shin Seong-sik [email protected]
