SEOUL (Reuters) -The vice chief of South Korea’s financial regulatory agency said on Monday there is a high likelihood of the country’s stock market being included in a key developed market index in the near future.
“We see a very high possibility of being included soon, if not this time,” Kim So-young, vice chairman of the Financial Services Commission, said at a press conference held in Seoul for foreign media.
The stock market of Asia’s fourth-largest economy is currently categorised as an emerging market by global index provider Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI), despite many other metrics indicating its developed-economy status.
Last month, South Korea lifted a full market-wide ban on short selling of stocks for the first time in five years, which had been cited by foreign investors and MSCI as a major factor hindering market access.
“More than 90% (of the issues raised by MSCI) have been resolved,” Kim said. He added that Chairman Kim Byoung-hwan would discuss recent improvements with foreign investors and the index provider during his visit to the U.S. this week.
MSCI is scheduled to review its market classifications in June. Typically, the index provider places a market on a watch-list for a year or two before any reclassification.
(Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)
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