Economic Experts and the Public Alike Say "Current Korean Economy in a 'Crisis Situation'"

KDI 'Economic Situation Perception' Survey... 96% of Citizens and 97% of Experts Respond 'Economic Crisis'

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Son Seon-hee] The majority of the public, including economic experts, perceive the current South Korean economic situation as a ‘crisis.’ Along with the global supply chain restructuring and technological hegemony competition among major countries, low birth rates and aging population are identified as representative threat factors as well as key challenges to overcome.

The Korea Development Institute (KDI) announced on the 21st the results of a survey titled ‘Public Opinion Survey on Economic Situation Awareness and Future Outlook’ containing these findings. Conducted to mark the 60th anniversary of the ‘Five-Year Economic Development Plan,’ the survey involved 405 KDI panel economic experts, including professors, researchers, businesspeople, and financiers, as well as 1,000 general citizens aged 20 and above.

According to the survey, 97% of economic experts and 96.3% of the general public diagnosed the current economic situation as a ‘crisis.’ As the global economic slowdown trend became more apparent amid high inflation, high interest rates, and high exchange rates, a widespread sense of crisis regarding the ‘economic crisis’ spread.

However, there was a difference in the degree of perceived crisis between the public and economic experts. Among economic experts, one in two (49.9%) responded that it is a ‘very serious crisis situation,’ whereas among the general public, the proportion responding ‘very serious crisis situation’ was 39.8%, and the highest proportion (56.5%) answered ‘somewhat crisis situation.’ This indicates that economic experts evaluate the current economic situation as more severe.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Economy and Finance and KDI held a commemorative meeting for the 60th anniversary of the Five-Year Economic Development Plan at the Global Knowledge Cooperation Complex in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul, on the same day. The meeting also included the Jaegyeonghoe and Yeuwhoe, groups of retired economic officials from predecessor organizations of the Ministry of Economy and Finance such as the Economic Planning Board, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Finance and Economy, and the Budget Office. Former Deputy Prime Ministers, Ministers, and KDI presidents also participated in full force.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-ho said in his greeting, “In the 1960s, when our economy was one of the poorest in the world, it was skeptically evaluated internationally as a ‘bottomless jar,’ but we wisely overcame various crises and achieved unprecedented economic growth in world history.” He added, “Now, in addition to domestic and external challenges, adverse factors such as high inflation and high interest rates have overlapped, leading us to face a complex economic crisis. To overcome this crisis, a whole-of-government effort is necessary, and let us use this meeting as an opportunity to create a new 60 years of leap forward.”