Kim Yong-beom, Deputy Minister of Economy and Finance, "Will Take Preemptive Measures if Financial Market Volatility Increases Due to COVID-19"

Kim Yong-beom, Vice Minister of Economy and Finance, is presiding over the 'Emergency Macroeconomic and Financial Meeting' at the Seoul Banking Hall on the 4th.

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] Kim Yong-beom, the 1st Vice Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, stated on the 4th, "If market volatility caused by the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) abnormally expands, we will respond firmly according to the contingency plan."

On the same day, Vice Minister Kim presided over an 'Emergency Macroeconomic Financial Meeting' at the Seoul Bankers' Hall with the Financial Services Commission, the Bank of Korea, the Financial Supervisory Service, and the International Financial Center, emphasizing this point.

At this meeting, a comprehensive review was conducted on the expansion of volatility in domestic and international financial markets due to the spread of COVID-19 and its impact on the real economy, along with discussions on future response directions.

Vice Minister Kim said, "Concerns about shocks to the real economy are growing as the U.S. Federal Reserve has taken emergency interest rate cuts, and volatility in domestic and international financial markets is increasing. We will establish a 24-hour monitoring system covering related agencies and overseas offices of each institution in the financial and foreign exchange market sectors and operate a joint daily trend inspection team among related agencies."

The U.S. Federal Reserve held an emergency Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on the 3rd (local time) and cut the benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points from 1.50-1.75% to 1.0-1.25%. This preemptive measure to prepare for the risk expansion caused by COVID-19 is the first time since the 2008 financial crisis that a rate cut has been made at a non-regular FOMC meeting and that the rate cut exceeded 25 basis points.

Vice Minister Kim urged related agencies to actively respond to the real economy, including domestic demand and exports. He emphasized, "There are concerns about contraction in overall domestic demand as well as in service sectors such as tourism, leisure, and culture. In exports, negative shocks are becoming visible, such as the decrease in average daily exports in February due to a decline in exports to China. While focusing all efforts on quarantine and stabilizing people's livelihoods, it is necessary for related ministries and agencies to respond with vigilance to minimize the ripple effects on our economy."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.