Minister of Health and Welfare Kwon Deok-cheol attends the 3rd National Pension Fund Management Committee held at the Westin Chosun Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 26th and makes a speech. News 1
The National Pension Plan’s attempt to increase the domestic stock investment limit was temporarily suspended on the 26th. The Fund Management Committee, the highest decision-making body of the National Pension Service, decided to withhold its conclusion on the change in the fund management guidelines on this day and review it again at the Fund Management Committee meeting held at the end of next month. Currently, the target share of national pension stocks in Korea is 16.8%. In addition, considering the characteristics of the stock market with high volatility, the allowable range of deviation from the target weight was set at ±2% points, and it was decided to expand this to ±3.5% points before further discussion. It was said that the controversy over the pros and cons was fierce at the meeting.
The background of the Fund Management Committee’s attempt to change the guidelines was to soften the continued selling of national pension stocks in Korea, but the appearance was by no means common. Even though the asset investment ratio for the following year has been confirmed in May every year, the agenda for amendment to the guidelines was suddenly proposed in March this year, but this is because the allowable range of deviation from the target weight that has been maintained for 10 years since 2011 has been adjusted. This is the reason why it is pointed out that this change is for elections conscious of’Donghak ants’, which have criticized the sale of the national pension ahead of the 4-7 by-election.
In fact, the National Pension Service has been selling domestic stocks since December of last year. As the stock price rose, the market capitalization of the stocks held far exceeded the target weight, indicating that the company continued to sell automatically to comply with the guidelines. The total net sales amounted to 1.5 trillion won this year. In the process, when the KOSPI, which once broke through the 3,200 level, fell around 3,000, voices criticizing the mechanical sale of the national pension spread among individual investors.
However, it is unreasonable to force a change in the guidelines without even criticizing that political motives were involved. It is not because of the reason to adhere to the principles of fund management. It is even more likely that the ‘5-year mid-term asset allocation plan’, which decided to reduce the share of domestic stocks to 15% and increase the share of overseas stocks to 30%, by 2023 in order to avoid the shock of the domestic stock market caused by the sale of stocks held in emergency. It’s a problem. Please draw reasonable conclusions so as not to set a bad precedent in further review.
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