Prime Minister Jeong: "Serious Impact Extends to Financial Sector... Actively Considering Additional Measures"

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun is delivering opening remarks at the "Emergency Economic Situation Review Meeting" held on the 15th at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun stated, "Regardless of industry or company size, the damage caused by the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) is spreading and having a serious impact on the financial sector."

At the emergency economic situation inspection meeting held at the Government Seoul Office on the 15th, Prime Minister Chung said, "We will closely monitor the economic situation and actively seek necessary additional measures."

He emphasized, "The government has prepared measures totaling 32 trillion won, including two rounds of livelihood economic measures and supplementary budgets to support COVID-19 damage. We will implement the first and second livelihood economic measures as quickly as possible and do our best to pass the supplementary budget. We will prepare so that it can be executed immediately upon passage."

He continued, "We will actively strengthen support for finance, taxation, and employment retention to prevent the collapse of the livelihood economy base, such as small business owners and self-employed individuals," and promised, "We will meticulously operate welfare safety nets such as emergency welfare support to prevent the difficulties of vulnerable groups from worsening."

He also mentioned, "To prevent risks in the real economy from transferring to financial instability, we will closely monitor the financial and foreign exchange markets while strengthening efforts to stabilize the market and international cooperation."

Furthermore, he said, "To reinforce economic vitality, we will actively support the expansion of private investment through tax credits and deregulation." He added, "The global supply chain is not functioning normally. We will support the establishment of alternative supply systems such as diversifying supply sources to minimize disruptions in production and exports, and do our best in intergovernmental cooperation to resolve difficulties caused by restrictions on businesspeople's overseas movement."

Prime Minister Chung expressed, "The government will be a source of strength when the people are in difficulty," and earnestly requested, "We sincerely ask the National Assembly to promptly pass the supplementary budget bill for economic recovery and livelihood stabilization."

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