Seoul, March 12 – South Korean President Lee Jae Myung instructed his aides on Thursday to quickly prepare an additional budget to help stabilize people's livelihoods and promote economic recovery, as the nation's economy braces for the impact of escalating conflict in the Middle East.
Lee made the call during a meeting with senior presidential aides, expressing concerns that increased instability in the Middle East could weaken consumer and investment sentiment.
"We also need to quickly inject funds to ensure that people's livelihoods and the economic recovery do not lose momentum, especially during times of crisis," Lee said. "A supplementary budget is unavoidable, so I ask that it be drafted as quickly as possible," Yonhap News Agency reported.
He urged officials to expedite the process of drafting the supplementary budget, which he said usually takes one to two months.
"We need wisdom not only in overcoming the current crisis on people's livelihoods, but also to use this crisis as a new opportunity for major national transformation," Lee said.
Lee also stressed that the impact of a worsening economy falls far more heavily on vulnerable groups, saying such polarization exacerbates inequality.
"We shouldn't waste this golden opportunity to alleviate the economic shock on people's livelihoods, and we should mobilize all policy measures," he said.
He ordered a review of such measures, including freezing public utility fees in the first half of the year, expanding discounts on agricultural, livestock, and fisheries products, as well as providing fuel subsidies for farmers and expanding fuel tax cuts.
Lee also noted that the National Assembly was expected to pass a special bill on South Korea's USD350 billion investment pledge to the United States later in the day.
"I ask both the ruling and opposition parties to once again unite so that this crisis becomes an opportunity for a major transformation for our economy and industry," Lee said, voicing appreciation to the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) for its cooperation.
The legislation calls for outlining the procedures required to carry out Seoul's investments in the US, including implementing a set of memoranda of understanding and the establishment of a "strategic investment fund" for the $350 billion package.
