SMEs "Welcome Early Fiscal Execution and Public Contract Procedure Relaxation"... Emergency Economic Meeting Measures

Headquarters of the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daeseop] The small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) sector expressed its welcome on the 8th regarding the "Measures to Ease Public Contract Procedures to Accelerate Early Fiscal Spending" announced at the 4th Emergency Economic Meeting on COVID-19 held at the Blue House.

The Korea Federation of SMEs stated in a commentary that "especially by temporarily raising the limit for small-sum private contracts for goods and services to 100 million KRW, it is expected that the limit for cooperative-recommended private contracts linked to this (Article 8 of the Enforcement Decree of the Act on Support for Market Development) will also be expanded."

The SME sector emphasized that this measure will greatly help revitalize SME cooperatives and alleviate the management difficulties of small businesses and micro-entrepreneurs going forward.

The Federation added, "Allowing private contracts even after one failed bid, significantly shortening the bidding announcement period to 5 days, and reducing the contract duration are seen as a reflection of the determination to overcome the national crisis through early fiscal spending. The expansion of the advance payment limit (from 70% to 80%) and the reduction of bid deposits and guarantee fees will also greatly contribute to easing the financial difficulties of companies participating in public procurement."

The SME sector also highly evaluated the government's commitment to supporting export-import companies. The Federation said, "We highly appreciate the government's intention to support export-import companies by supplying an additional 36 trillion KRW or more in trade finance, spreading the model of exception entry for businesspeople, and temporarily easing environmental regulations to resolve export difficulties and stabilize global supply chains."

The Federation requested that a thorough implementation plan be prepared to ensure that the detailed policies reflected in this measure are implemented in a timely manner. The SME sector plans to take the lead in overcoming the crisis by responding to government policies and alleviating the burdens of micro-entrepreneurs suffering from severe consumption downturns due to COVID-19, including promoting a virtuous consumer movement where the weaker help those even weaker in a spirit of coexistence.

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