Hong Nam-ki: "Mid-3% Growth Possible This Year"

Hong Nam-ki, Acting Prime Minister, attended the government questioning session on economic affairs held at the National Assembly plenary session on the 20th and responded to questions from Seo Byung-soo, a member of the People Power Party. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] Hong Nam-ki, Acting Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, said on the 20th, "The economic recovery trend continues, making mid-3% growth possible this year."

During the economic sector government questioning at the April extraordinary National Assembly session, Hong responded to a question from Hong Ik-pyo, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, about this year's growth forecast by saying, "When the government presented 3.2% at the end of last year, many pointed out that it was too high compared to market expectations, but since then, the impact of vaccine distribution and the global economy have shown significant recovery."

He added, "The global leading and coincident indicators, as well as our economic leading and coincident indicators, have greatly improved," and said, "It's not just optimistic thinking; I believe there will be no major difficulties in our economy recovering to around the mid-3% range."

Hong also stated, "After employment numbers declined for over a year, they turned positive in March, and the trend of increasing employment is expected to continue in April and May," adding, "Employment indicators tend to lag behind economic recovery, and it will take time for job gains to be noticeably felt on the ground, but overall, the employment situation is showing an improving trend."