Hong Nam-ki "Concerns Over Vulnerable Groups' Damage Due to COVID-19 Resurgence... Measures to Strengthen Economy Under Consideration"

Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, is having a video conference with Fitch, an international credit rating agency, at the Government Seoul Office Building on the afternoon of the 4th.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, stated during a meeting with the annual consultation team from the international credit rating agency Fitch that "there are concerns about damage to vulnerable groups due to the resurgence of COVID-19 in Korea," and that necessary measures such as economic reinforcement will be considered.

According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on the 5th, Deputy Prime Minister Hong held an annual consultation via conference call the previous afternoon with Fitch's Global Head of Sovereign Ratings James McCormack and Head of Asia-Pacific Sovereign Ratings Steven Schwartz, explaining Korea's COVID-19 quarantine and economic response measures, as well as the government's fiscal outlook.

Fitch inquired about Korea's recent COVID-19 resurgence trends and policy responses, noting that Korea managed to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the first half of the year without large-scale lockdowns.

In response, Hong emphasized, "Key elements of Korea's COVID-19 quarantine include large-scale rapid testing, thorough epidemiological investigations, and the public's high compliance with daily quarantine rules such as mask-wearing," adding, "Based on the effective quarantine experience from February to April, we will do our best to quickly overcome this resurgence."

He continued, "Production, consumption, and investment, which had been improving before the COVID-19 resurgence, have somewhat slowed, and there are concerns about damage to small business owners and vulnerable groups, so we are actively considering necessary measures such as economic reinforcement."

Specifically, he mentioned tailored support plans for vulnerable groups such as small business owners and self-employed individuals, as well as adjustments and supplements to measures aimed at boosting economic vitality in the second half of the year through investment, exports, and consumption.

Regarding the deterioration of fiscal soundness indicators, Deputy Prime Minister Hong said, "It was an unavoidable measure to respond to the COVID-19 crisis," and added, "We are paying special attention to medium- to long-term fiscal soundness."

Fitch stated that this annual consultation helped them understand Korea's economic situation and the Korean government's direction in responding to COVID-19 policies.