Korea's martial-law night: a political shock hits the won and KOSPI
Backfilled context carries a typed causal-confidence label and never claims a confirmed driver without human-attached evidence — a single reviewed reference establishes chronology, not causation.
What happened
Late on 3 December 2024, South Korea's president declared martial law — the first such declaration in decades. The National Assembly voted to reject it within hours and the declaration was lifted the same night, but the shock set off a period of acute political uncertainty that led to the president's impeachment later that month.
What was known then
During the hours of the declaration, it was genuinely unclear whether the order would stand, how the military would respond, and whether markets would open normally. Authorities publicly pledged unlimited liquidity support before the next session.
Market reaction
The won weakened sharply to multi-year lows against the dollar in the immediate aftermath, and Korean equities traded lower over the following sessions before stabilising as institutional continuity became clearer.
What was uncertain
The constitutional process timeline, whether policy continuity (including budget and FX policy) would hold through an impeachment, and how foreign investors would treat Korean assets during the transition.
What changed afterward
The impeachment process concluded and a new administration took office in 2025; the episode left a persistent political-risk discount debate in Korean-asset coverage and demonstrated the resilience of Korea's market infrastructure under stress.
Why it still matters
Korea is a core coverage region for this site. Won and KOSPI reactions to domestic political headlines are still read against this episode's template of shock, backstop and stabilisation.
Sources
Primary and official references reviewed for this entry.
◦ Bank of Korea (official)
◦ National Assembly of the Republic of Korea (public record) (official)
Latest developments
Current coverage that genuinely overlaps this episode — nothing is linked for the sake of linking.
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