Kim Eunhye Criticizes, "An Amateur Has Taken Control of the Country"
Calls for Public Support to Halt Reckless Economic Policies
Points to Policy Reversals and Incompetence as Causes of Investor Frustration
Koo Yoonchul Apologizes for PBR-PER Con
Amid mounting criticism from investors over Deputy Prime Minister for Economy and Minister of Strategy and Finance Koo Yoonchul's response that the KOSPI PBR (Price-to-Book Ratio) is "around 10," Eunhye Kim, a member of the People Power Party, criticized, "An amateur is running the country." On the 21st, Kim, who serves as the party's Senior Deputy Floor Leader for Policy, wrote on her social media, "I will seek and appeal to the public for the strength to stop this reckless drive led by amateurs who have taken over the country."
Kim pointed out, "President Lee Jaemyung promised during his candidacy that he would not try to control housing prices through taxes, but before even 100 days into his administration, Policy Chief Kim Yongbeom from the presidential office reversed this, saying, 'That was a miscalculation.' I had my doubts, and they were confirmed."
She continued, "They said the KOSPI would reach 5,000 points, but then raised capital gains and transaction taxes, while the Deputy Prime Minister answered that the PBR, currently at 1.0, was 10, leaving retail investors in disbelief. The Prime Minister does not know the amount of national debt, and former Democratic Party Policy Chief Jin Sungjoon, who has never traded stocks, refuses to back down on the major shareholder capital gains tax standard. This makes it clear that incompetence is more frightening than lack of conviction." She added, "As they try to cover up their incompetence, their excuses only get longer. The Lee Jaemyung administration itself is becoming the cause of the Korea Discount."
She further stated, "Riding this momentum, the Democratic Party is now pushing through the broadcasting law, corporate-strangling commercial law, and the Yellow Envelope Act that drives businesses away. The presidential office says they will fix it after passing it, but that's no different from saying they'll find a cure after the damage is done." She emphasized, "While it is difficult to restore a country, it only takes a moment to ruin it. The Democratic Party, which listens only to the voices of its fervent supporters rather than the people, the Lee Jaemyung administration that has mortgaged the country's future to the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, and a government that hands out 150,000 won in subsidies while trying to take more through taxes-how do they plan to handle the consequences of this country and this harsh administration later?"
On the 21st, Koo Yoonchul, Deputy Prime Minister for Economy and Minister of Strategy and Finance, attended the full meeting of the Planning and Finance Committee held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News
Deputy Prime Minister Koo sparked controversy on the 19th during a National Assembly Planning and Finance Committee work report when Lee Soyoung, a member of the Democratic Party, asked about the KOSPI's PBR and he replied, "around 10." According to the Korea Exchange, as of the closing on the 19th, the KOSPI stood at 3,151.56 points with a PBR of 1.06. However, on the 21st, Koo apologized, stating, "While preparing answers to questions and reviewing various materials at the time, I momentarily confused PBR with PER (Price-to-Earnings Ratio). I sincerely apologize as this was my mistake." PER, another widely used indicator for evaluating corporate or stock market value, stood at 12.66 at the end of last year.
Previously, during a National Assembly confirmation hearing in June, Prime Minister Kim was also criticized when Heejeong Kim, a member of the People Power Party, asked, "Do you know the national debt ratio?" and he replied, "I believe it is between 20% and 30%." In fact, as of last year, Korea's national debt ratio was 44.8%, which became a source of controversy.
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