KCCI Chairman Delivers 2026 New Year's Address in the Year of the Red Horse
"Need to Create a Growth-Friendly Institutional Environment"
"Facing Complex Challenges, Comprehensive Growth Strategy Needed"
Choi Tae-won, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Chairman of SK Group, reiterated the importance of 'regulatory reform' in his New Year's address. He emphasized that, in order to support large-scale investments and innovation by companies in the era of artificial intelligence (AI), "close cooperation between the government and businesses, beyond existing frameworks and approaches, is more important than ever."
In his 2026 New Year's address released on the 29th, Chairman Choi stated, "We must correct the structure in which the growth of companies is met with increasing regulation and burdens," adding, "We need to create a growth-friendly institutional environment so that innovative companies can scale up and their achievements can lead to job creation and the spread of social value."
He diagnosed that the Korean economy is facing complex challenges such as low growth, uncertainty in the international situation, and rapid shifts in technological paradigms, and called for a 'comprehensive strategy' to restore and accelerate growth. He continued, "Nevertheless, thanks to the joint efforts of the government, National Assembly, and businesses, a gradual recovery trend is emerging across the economy," stressing, "The important task now is to connect this trend to sustainable growth."
The key, he said, is to rationally improve the structural burdens faced by companies, which are the main drivers of growth. Chairman Choi stated, "AI, digital transformation (DX), and green transformation (GX) are both new challenges and opportunities for growth that will determine our economy's mid- to long-term competitiveness," and added, "We need to enhance the predictability of the system so that corporate investment and innovation are not discouraged, and rationally improve the structural burdens that arise during the growth process of companies."
He also lent his voice to the government's ongoing emphasis on revitalizing regional economies. He said, "Revitalizing regional economies is an important platform for Korea's economic renewal and for addressing social issues together," and added, "Although various challenges have been intertwined, making it difficult to find practical solutions, now is the time to use the regions as testbeds for institutional innovation, strengthen the competitiveness of future industries, and seek solutions to structural difficulties."
Chairman Choi concluded, "The industrial competitiveness of Korea today is the result of the challenges undertaken by those who have pioneered new paths despite risks," and added, "With the arrival of the Year of the Red Horse, I hope that this entrepreneurial spirit, supported by government policy and social consensus, will once again become a driving force for growth."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
