National pension fund posts 9.18 pct return on investment through Sept.

SEOUL, Nov. 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's state pension fund has seen an improved return on its investments this year, driven by the strong performance of overseas stocks, its operator said Friday.

In the January-September period, the fund posted a 9.18 percent return on its investments, compared with 8.66 percent from the same period last year, according to the National Pension Service (NPS).

As of end-September, the value of assets managed by the NPS stood at 1,146 trillion won (US$820 billion), with the annual profit standing at 97.2 trillion won.

In the first nine months of the year, the fund registered a 21.35 percent return on its investment in overseas stocks, far outpacing the 0.46 percent return posted by local stocks.

Overseas bonds delivered a return of 6.97 percent, compared with 4.09 percent posted by local bonds.

"Despite concerns over an economic slowdown and the U.S. rate cut, gains from overseas shares and the strong U.S. dollar have had a positive impact on the returns," the NPS said.

The NPS currently distributes 3.6 trillion won monthly, with 833,000 recipients receiving 1 million won or more.

Meanwhile, the government recently proposed raising the pension contribution rate from the current 9 percent to 13 percent of income and implementing age-based differentiated increases to address concerns about the fund's sustainability.

South Korea's pension system, initially established to ensure a stable income after retirement, has faced challenges due to the rapidly aging population and declining birth rate.

colin@yna.co.kr
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