South Korean stocks tank as president declares martial law
Published: 11:32 03 Dec 2024 EST
South Korean stocks faced a sharp drop after president Yoon Suk Yeol moved to declare martial law on Tuesday.
Yoon announced the decision in a late-night television address, dubbing the move necessary in a bid to protect the country from North Korea's communist forces.
Tracker funds in the US tumbled in the wake of the announcement, with news on whether South Korean markets would open on Wednesday unclear.
The iShares MSCI South Korea ETF, which tracks over 90 large and mid-sized South Korean companies, dropped as much as 6% to a year-low in the aftermath.
Yoon, of the People Power Party, has been locked in a dispute with the opposition Democratic Party, which has a majority in South Korea’s parliament, over next year’s budget most recently.
He accused opposition of sympathising with North Korea upon declaring martial law on Tuesday, which marks the first in the country since 1980.
How the temporary ruling by military forces would affect governance in South Korea was not specified, with parliament reportedly since having voted to block the martial law declaration.
