South Korea Finance Minister says corporate reform plan to continue until ‘Korea discount’ is resolved
7:49 pm Sunday, February 25th, 2024
SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea’s finance minister said the government’s corporate reform plan would continue in steps until the “Korea discount” in the local stock market is resolved.
The government is scheduled to unveil details of a “Corporate Value-up Programme” on Monday, which led the stock market’s recent rally to a 20-month high.
“Today’s announcement does not complete the value-up support plan, but it is the first step toward upgrading our financial market to the next level,” Choi said ahead of the announcement.
South Korean stocks have long underperformed their global peers largely due to poor decision making and weak governance by the country’s opaque chaebol conglomerates.
Choi said the guideline for the programme, designed to boost the value of Seoul-listed companies by encouraging more shareholder returns, would be finalised in the first half of this year. It would encourage companies to participate voluntarily and minimise burden, he said.
The government will also provide various tax incentives for companies’ reform efforts and announce them as prepared, Choi said.
(Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Richard Chang and Lincoln Feast.)
