President Lee Says He Has Picked “the Best-Ever Achievements” to Put on the Lunar New Year Table...KOSPI at 5,564, What Comes Next?

[Financial News] On the 15th, just days before the Lunar New Year holiday, President Lee Jae-myung personally selected and released a series of card-style infographics showcasing his administration’s achievements in people’s livelihoods, the economy, foreign affairs and national security, and science and technology. Notably, he placed the record high of the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the very top of the economic section, drawing attention. As Lee stated that he had “picked out the biggest and best achievements ever,” observers say the fact that the president chose these items himself offers clues about where he wants to steer public conversation over the holiday.
Posting on YouTube’s community tab that day, Lee wrote, “Ahead of Lunar New Year, we have picked out the biggest and best-ever achievements our government has made so far in areas such as people’s livelihoods, the economy, and foreign affairs and security.” He went on, “A Korea that is better today than it was yesterday will continue,” adding, “The government will firmly join hands with the people and walk that path together.”
The part that drew the most attention was the “KOSPI record high.” As of the 13th, the KOSPI closed at 5,564. As the Lunar New Year holiday approaches, conversations at the table almost always turn to prices, the economy, and real estate. In this context, the president’s decision to lead with a stock market indicator is seen as a message meant to underscore that economic sentiment is improving.
In the economic section of the card news, Lee highlighted not only the KOSPI record but also a current account balance of 123.1 billion dollars, a net increase of 55.3 trillion won in foreign holdings of Korean government bonds, and an export value of 709.4 billion dollars. For people’s livelihoods, he pointed to the supply of key Lunar New Year food items (285,000 tons of 16 major agricultural, livestock, and fisheries products), K-food exports worth 13.6 billion dollars, an average Composite Consumer Sentiment Index (CCSI) of 110.7, and credit recovery support for 2.928 million people. In foreign affairs and security, he listed the launch of a Task Force on Transnational Crime and the repatriation of 737 suspects to Korea, an agreement to pursue South Korea–U.S. nuclear-powered submarine cooperation, and the outcomes of summit diplomacy. In science and technology, he cited securing 260,000 graphics processing units (GPUs) and an AI budget of 9.9 trillion won, an R&D budget of 35.5 trillion won, Korea’s ICT export value of 264.29 billion dollars, and the successful fourth launch of the Nuri (KSLV-II) rocket. In the social and cultural field, he also highlighted achievements such as 18.93 million inbound tourists, 6.5 million visitors to the National Museum of Korea, and the live broadcasting of Cabinet meetings and policy briefings.
From a political standpoint, the very act of presenting achievements in such a direct, visual format can itself be read as a message. Rather than broadly listing each ministry’s accomplishments, Lee selected items that could be framed as “biggest” or “best-ever” and bundled them into a single package. This approach can both guard against holiday public opinion turning into partisan policy battles and gradually reinforce the impression that “state affairs are improving.”
At the same time, Lee has been using social media (SNS) to address sensitive political and judicial issues head-on. On the 14th, he criticized the prosecution service over the controversy surrounding alleged distortions of the so-called Jeong Young-hak recording, denouncing it as “outrageous evidence fabrication” and openly challenging the investigation and trial process.
That same day, he did not hold back in the dispute over real estate policy either. “I am only pursuing the normalization of the real estate market; I am not forcing anyone to sell their home,” he stated, directly addressing criticism that he was trying to pressure multiple-home owners to sell. This was a rebuttal to People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyuk, who had mocked Lee’s remarks on extending the maturity of mortgage loans for multiple-home owners by asking, “What do you think about the black comedy of even pro-Lee lawmakers refusing the president’s orders and turning into pro-real-estate lawmakers?” Lee also added, “For the record, I own just one home,” seeking to preempt further controversy.
In a separate post, he wrote again, “I am not forcing anyone. It is simply more desirable to use housing for residential purposes rather than for investment or speculation, so we are only revising laws and systems so that the opposite choice results in losses.”
In effect, promotion of achievements, signaling of policy direction, and rebuttals on judicial issues are all being carried out simultaneously through social media. Ahead of the holiday, economic achievements are being pushed to the forefront, while contentious issues are met with immediate responses. This is why observers say social media has become a direct stage for Lee’s governance.

west@fnnews.com Reporter Seong Seok-woo Reporter