Protesters calling for the ouster of South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol react after the result of the second martial law impeachment vote outside the National Assembly in Seoul on December 14, 2024. South Korean lawmakers on December 14 voted to remove President Yoon Suk Yeol from office for his failed attempt to impose martial law last week.
Anthony Wallace | Afp | Getty Images
South Korean markets are on pace for a fifth straight day of gains following the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday.
South Korea’s National Assembly’s second attempt to impeach Yoon succeeded as 204 lawmakers voted in favor of the motion, crossing the two-thirds bar needed to impeach Yoon in the 300-seat chamber. The vote was triggered over Yoon’s short-lived declaration of martial law.
The blue-chip Kospi was up 0.1% on Monday morning, while the small-cap Kosdaq was 0.58% higher.
Yoon had declared martial law late on Dec. 3, the first time in over 40 years that Asia’s fourth-largest economy has seen martial law declared. He rescinded the order hours later after 190 lawmakers voted down the declaration.
Opposition lawmakers had moved an initial impeachment vote on Dec. 7, but that failed to clear the 200-vote bar needed to impeach Yoon after lawmakers from his ruling People’s Power Party walked out of the chamber.
The Kospi has gained about 2.2% since the close of Dec. 3 — the last trading day before martial law was declared, and the Kosdaq has gained about 1.1%.
Both indexes had rebounded strongly last week after initially falling following the martial law flip-flop and failed first impeachment vote. The Kospi hit its lowest level since November 2023 on Dec. 9.
The Kospi has gained about 6% since the Dec. 9 low, while the Kosdaq has recorded around an 11% climb since then.