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South Korea: Seoul searching

Around the world with the EME team

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5 minutes to read by  W.Hayes, RBC Emerging Markets Equity team Apr 2, 2025

South Korea has been in the headlines of late, with the country awaiting the final outcome of impeachment proceedings against President Yoon. While we were pleasantly surprised to discover a business-as-usual approach on the ground in Seoul, the key takeaway from our discussions was the sense of anticipation among the country’s companies and investors.

In our full piece, we discuss:

  • An uncertain outlook: within the coming months, the country could potentially see confirmation of President Yoon’s impeachment, the revision of the Commercial Act, the lifting of a short selling ban in the country, and the election of a new president.

  • Improving corporate governance: the penny has dropped for many South Korean corporates. Shareholder return agendas and increased dividends, share buybacks and cancellations were discussed across the board, with many proactively seeking feedback from investors on best practice.

  •  K-beauty: new exports, K-cosmetics, are gaining momentum overseas and are known for being high-quality, reasonably priced products. They are increasingly created by desirable indie brands and made by cosmetics original design manufacturers with fast turnaround times and strong customer relationships.

  •  Demographic trends: South Korea’s ageing population and declining fertility mean that this technologically advanced country will need to continue to focus on robotics and AI. Evidence of this is already creeping into the public domain, with robotic drinks preparation and service in one of the malls we visited.

While South Korea remains export-focused and far from immune to geopolitical and domestic political turbulence, we feel cautiously optimistic. Flying out of Seoul, we feel hopeful that positive change may be afoot.

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