[2026 National Assembly Audit] Lee Hyeongil: "Raising National Pension Service's Domestic Stock Allocation Not Aimed at Boosting the Market"

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy Lee Hyeong-il said on the 22nd that the National Pension Service's decision to raise its target allocation to domestic stocks "was not made to boost the stock market or defend share prices in the short term."

At the comprehensive parliamentary audit held by the National Assembly's Finance and Economy Planning Committee that day, Assemblyman Kim Sang-hoon of the People Power Party argued that raising the target allocation to domestic stocks had increased the National Pension Service's investment risk. Lee responded that the decision was made "after considering various factors together, including market conditions and the principles governing fund management."

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy Lee Hyeong-il answers questions during the 2026 comprehensive parliamentary audit held by the National Assembly's Finance and Economy Planning Committee on the 22nd. Yonhap News.

Lee stressed that the sharp rise in the domestic stock market had made it difficult to maintain the existing asset allocation standards. "Domestic stocks rose very rapidly from the second half of 2025, so we deferred rebalancing in January this year," he said. "By around May, we had decided to end the deferral and return to normal operations starting July 1."

He noted that if the target allocation to domestic stocks had not been adjusted, the resumption of rebalancing would have triggered large-scale selling in the market. "If we had not raised the target allocation, the target would have been too low even as domestic stocks had already risen significantly. We thought that proceeding under those conditions would lead to a sharp increase in selling," Lee added.

Lee also vigorously defended his attendance at the Fund Management Committee meeting, which had sparked controversy. Assemblyman Kim said Lee had skipped other meetings while serving as the First Vice Minister of Finance and Economy, but selectively attended the Fund Management Committee meeting where the increase in the target allocation to domestic stocks was discussed.

In response, Lee said, "Every May, we discuss matters related to medium- and long-term target allocations," adding, "The First Vice Minister has attended during that period every year."

He also explained the decision to keep the meeting minutes confidential for four years, saying, "We have decided each year to keep them confidential because disclosing the relevant information could have a direct impact on the financial markets."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.