Hong Nam-ki "Private Consumption and Service Industry Production Hit Hardest Since IMF Crisis Due to COVID-19 Impact"

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki is delivering opening remarks while presiding over the "15th Economic Ministers' Meeting on COVID-19 Response and 5th Crisis Management Meeting" held on the 23rd at the Government Seoul Office in Gwanghwamun, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, stated on the 23rd that "due to the impact of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), both private consumption and service sector production in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) show the most difficult situation since the International Monetary Fund (IMF) foreign exchange crisis."

On this day, Deputy Prime Minister Hong made these remarks while presiding over the 5th Crisis Management Meeting held at the Government Seoul Office.

Hong said, "The GDP for the first quarter of this year was just announced, reflecting the impact of the COVID-19 situation, showing a -1.4% decrease compared to the previous quarter, and a 1.3% growth compared to the same period last year," adding, "Similar to the employment indicators in March, sectors closely related to the livelihood economy such as accommodation and food services, wholesale and retail, transportation, culture, and leisure have been hit hard."

He expressed concern that the situation in the second quarter of this year would worsen. Hong stated, "The recovery trend in investment and exports that briefly continued since the end of last year somewhat buffered the slowdown in growth in the first quarter, but from the second quarter, as the global economic recession intensifies, concerns about expanding real economy and employment shocks have increased."

Furthermore, Hong emphasized, "We will make every effort to ensure that households and businesses withstand the downward pressure on growth and employment in the second quarter, and that domestic demand and exports recover in the second half of the year along with the end of COVID-19 quarantine, by continuously devising extraordinary measures and timely policy responses."

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