South Korea’s National Pension Service was sharply criticized in parliament after pausing domestic equity rebalancing on Jan. 26, a move lawmakers say allowed foreign investors to sell into rising prices and left retail holders exposed. The pause preceded a KOSPI rally — crossing a 5,000‑point political benchmark and later topping 8,000 — during which the fund’s domestic equity weight exceeded its prescribed limit. At end‑May the fund’s operations committee raised the domestic equity target to 2

South Korea’s National Pension Service was sharply criticized in parliament after pausing domestic equity rebalancing on Jan. 26, a move lawmakers say allowed foreign investors to sell into rising prices and left retail holders exposed. The pause preceded a KOSPI rally — crossing a 5,000‑point political benchmark and later topping 8,000 — during which the fund’s domestic equity weight exceeded its prescribed limit. At end‑May the fund’s operations committee raised the domestic equity target to 20.8% from 14.9% and widened the strategic allocation band from ±3ppt to ±6ppt, allowing a domestic equity ceiling of 28.8% — a change critics say effectively restricts rule‑based sell‑downs even if the KOSPI remains in the mid‑to‑high 8,000s. Opposition lawmaker Lee Dae‑hee called the NPS “a cash machine for foreign investors,” underscoring political scrutiny of the fund’s trading and allocation decisions.