Government to Announce Roadmap for MSCI Developed Markets Index Inclusion Within This Year

The government will announce a comprehensive roadmap within this year for Korea’s inclusion in the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Developed Markets Index.

The Ministry of Economy and Finance stated this on July 15 during the kickoff meeting of the "MSCI Developed Markets Index Inclusion Task Force (TF)," which was chaired by First Vice Minister Lee Hyungil, who is serving as Acting Minister, at the Government Complex Seoul.

During the meeting, participants discussed the current status and response strategies regarding inclusion in the MSCI Developed Markets Index, as well as future plans. The meeting was attended by representatives from the Financial Services Commission, the Bank of Korea, the Financial Supervisory Service, the Korea Exchange, and the Korea Securities Depository.

Korea once again failed to be listed as a candidate for inclusion, known as the Watch List, in the annual market classification announced by MSCI last month. After opening its domestic stock market to foreign investors for the first time in 1992, Korea was added to the Watch List in June 2008. However, it was not included in the index due to insufficient market accessibility, and since 2014, Korea has also been excluded from the Watch List.

The government plans to include in the comprehensive roadmap proactive improvement tasks across all areas necessary for inclusion in the MSCI Developed Markets Index, such as foreign exchange transactions, investment systems, and market infrastructure.

The government will immediately announce and implement any tasks identified by the TF that can be pursued right away. The aim is to ensure that the effects of institutional improvements are quickly felt.

In addition, the government intends to provide regular updates on the status of institutional reforms through meetings with MSCI and investor relations (IR) sessions in major international financial centers, and to incorporate feedback from overseas investors.

Lee stated, "Through the push for inclusion in the MSCI Developed Markets Index, we will establish an investment environment that meets global standards and use this opportunity to further advance our foreign exchange and capital markets."