On December 4, 2024, in Seoul, South Korea, people gathered outside the National Assembly after South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol declared martial law.
Kim Soo Hyun | Reuters
South Korean markets opened on Wednesday after a day of political turmoil that saw President Yoon Suk Yeol impose and then lift martial law within hours.
South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.8% and the Kosdaq fell 1.7%.
According to reports, due to concerns about financial instability, a Bank of Korea official said that the bank’s monetary policy committee will hold a special board meeting at around 9 a.m. Korea time.
Reuters reported that the South Korean government announced that it would inject unlimited liquidity into the financial market if necessary to calm market sentiment.
The Korea Exchange announced that the Korean stock market will open as normal at 9 a.m.
Other Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed as investors digested events in South Korea.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index opened down 0.3%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.2% and the Topix rose 0.05%.
Hongkong Hang Seng Index Index futures were at 19,785 points, higher than the Hang Seng Index’s last closing point of 19,746.32 points.
Overnight in the United States, South Korean stocks swung wildly amid political unrest that has rocked the world’s 13th largest economy.
The iShares MSCI Korea ETF (EWY), which tracks more than 90 large and mid-cap companies in South Korea, plunged 7% to hit a 52-week low.
Later in the day, the ETF pared losses and closed down 1.6% on Tuesday after Yoon said he would lift his emergency declaration after the National Assembly voted to overturn his martial law order.
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 edged up 0.05% and the Nasdaq rose 0.4%. Both indexes closed at record highs. Thirty stocks in the Dow lagged, falling nearly 0.2%.
—CNBC’s Yun Li and Hakyung Kim contributed to this report.
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