Hong Nam-ki "Income distribution greatly improved in Q1... Better than before COVID-19"

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki is speaking at the meeting of related ministers to review the real estate market held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 20th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki evaluated the results of the Household Trends Survey released by Statistics Korea on the 20th, stating that "the income distribution situation has greatly improved."

Deputy Prime Minister Hong posted on his social media service (SNS) that "the quintile ratio, a representative income distribution indicator, decreased by 0.59 points to 6.30 compared to the first quarter of last year," and explained, "The quintile ratio has improved for two consecutive quarters following the fourth quarter of last year, and the extent of improvement has also significantly expanded." The quintile ratio is an indicator that compares disposable income divided by household size between the first and fifth quintiles. An increase in the figure indicates worsening distribution, while a decrease indicates improvement in distribution.

Hong further analyzed, "The first quarter quintile ratio is lower not only than the first quarter of last year but also than the first quarter of 2019 (6.74), before COVID-19, and even by the pre-statistical revision standard (nationwide non-agricultural households with two or more members), the distribution indicator has greatly improved."

However, he also "seriously recognizes that overall labor and business income have decreased and the total income of the fifth quintile has contracted, indicating ongoing difficulties in market income," and emphasized, "The government will strengthen policy responses to ensure that the improvement in distribution continues and will actively strive to ensure that the recent economic recovery leads to overall employment and income improvement." He added,

"In the economic policy direction for the second half of the year, scheduled to be announced next month, we will actively discover additional tasks for expanding domestic demand, creating jobs, and stabilizing livelihoods, and do our best to resolve polarization."

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