Ph.D. in Economics Yoo Seung-min Urges Government Action
"Bank of Korea Tops Corporate Tax List, Never Seen Such Numbers"
"10 Trillion Won Essential Supplementary Budget, Far From Enough"
Former People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Seung-min, who holds a Ph.D. in economics, stated, "The Bank of Korea surpassed major conglomerates such as Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor, and SK Hynix to become the top corporate tax payer last year," adding, "I have seen countless economic statistics throughout my life, but I have never seen such an absurd figure." On the 31st, Yoo urged the government to take action through his social media, saying, "This indicates that the real economy is in crisis."
Yoo said, "It is certainly commendable that the Bank of Korea earned a net profit of 7.8 trillion won last year from overseas stock and bond trading and paid 2.6 trillion won in corporate taxes," but he pointed out, "The problem lies with our companies that are unable to generate profits even compared to the Bank of Korea. This is evidence that both exports and domestic demand, the real economy, are in crisis."
He added, "The competitiveness of core manufacturing industries that have driven the growth of the Korean economy?such as semiconductors, home appliances, automobiles, shipbuilding, steel, and petrochemicals?is in serious jeopardy, and advanced industries like artificial intelligence, robotics, batteries, and biotechnology have not secured the competitiveness needed to sustain our economy," forecasting, "Our economy is on a downward slope to the extent that growth rates are projected to be in the 0% range this year." He further stated, "Ultimately, to strengthen industrial competitiveness through domestic companies and industries, all policy tools including talent, science and technology, infrastructure, support, and regulation must be fully mobilized," diagnosing that "a 10 trillion won scale 'essential supplementary budget' is far from sufficient."
Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok announced, "We will push forward a 10 trillion won scale 'essential supplementary budget' that includes only projects that can be swiftly executed to address urgent current issues." He emphasized, "In terms of content, we will focus on three major areas where there is no disagreement between the ruling and opposition parties: disaster and calamity response, strengthening trade and AI competitiveness, and supporting livelihoods." He also expressed concern, stating, "Externally, as trade risks such as tariff impositions by the new U.S. administration materialize, the survival of key industries is threatened, and competition for leadership in advanced industries like AI is intensifying."
In response, former lawmaker Yoo said, "To overcome the crisis, the nation must mobilize all its capabilities. Beyond maximizing the use of existing available resources, rapid additional fiscal investment must be made," emphasizing, "The supplementary budget should focus on strengthening industrial competitiveness and strongly and swiftly push forward a 50 trillion won Advanced Industry Strategic Fund, among others." He criticized, "Using the president's suspension as an excuse to hesitate and neglect necessary duties is dereliction of duty," and urged, "Regardless of the impeachment situation, the government must immediately carry out the tasks needed to revive the economy."
According to the Bank of Korea's 2024 annual report released on the 28th of last month, the net profit last year was 7.8189 trillion won, an increase of 6.4567 trillion won from the previous year (1.3622 trillion won). Achieving the second-highest net profit ever, the corporate tax payment surged fivefold to 2.5782 trillion won from 501.8 billion won the previous year. As of 2023, the corporate tax payments by domestic conglomerates were reported to be at similar levels to the Bank of Korea's payment, with Samsung Electronics paying 4.2731 trillion won, SK Hynix 1.6766 trillion won, Hyundai Motor 473.5 billion won, and Kia 685.8 billion won.
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