Prime Minister Jeong: "'Korea Sale Festa' Will Be a Lifeline for the Ordinary Economy"

Opening Ceremony Speech..."This Year, the Largest Scale Ever"
Over 1,600 Companies Participating...Manufacturing Industry 3 Times Higher Than Last Year

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun (third from the left) giving a thumbs-up challenge with attendees including ordinary citizens at the opening ceremony of the country's largest shopping festival, '2020 Korea Sale Festa,' held at the 'Seoul ON' studio in Seoul City Hall on the 31st. (Image source=Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun stated on the 31st that the "Korea Sale Festa (Kosepe) will be a refreshing rain for the weakened low-income economy."

Prime Minister Chung made this remark while attending the opening ceremony of the "2020 Kosepe" held at Seoul City Hall on the same day.

In his congratulatory speech, he said, "This year's event is the largest ever, with over 1,600 companies participating, more than double last year," and emphasized, "Especially, consumption of innovative small and medium-sized enterprises' products will be the driving force toward a 'jar-shaped economy' with a strong middle class."

He continued, "This year's Kosepe will be more than just a shopping event; it will be a warm time of companionship," expressing his expectations.

Prime Minister Chung said, "The private sector and government walk together, consumers and sellers walk together, small business owners and large corporations, traditional markets and department stores walk together," adding, "If we walk together, crisis will become opportunity."

About 1,600 companies are participating in Korea's representative shopping event, "Kosepe," held from the 1st to the 15th of next month.

For manufacturers, 971 companies are participating, three times more than last year, marking the largest scale ever.

During this period, special discount events for representative consumer goods such as home appliances, information technology (IT) products including smartphones, automobiles, tires, clothing, cosmetics, furniture, and tableware will be promoted under the leadership of the private sector.

Earlier, the Bank of Korea announced on the 27th that the real gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate for the third quarter (July to September) recorded 1.9%, stating that "private consumption decreased by 0.1% compared to the second quarter."

This is due to the resurgence of COVID-19 centered around Seoul and the metropolitan area since mid-August, leading to the implementation of social distancing level 2.5 and other quarantine measures, which have suppressed consumption.

Because of this, the government hopes that Kosepe will serve as momentum for revitalizing domestic demand in the fourth quarter.

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