Chu Kyung-ho as the First Deputy Prime Minister for Economy in the New Government... Yoon "Highly Evaluates His Ability to Coordinate Current Issues" (Update)

Yoon Administration's First Deputy Prime Minister for Economy: Choo Kyung-ho... 'Traditional Bureaucrat' and Incumbent Lawmaker
Surprise Appointment of Won Hee-ryong as Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport... Likely Considering Parliamentary Breakthrough Ability
Lee Chang-yang Appointed as Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy... Leading Private Sector-Led Policies and Regulatory Reform

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyemin] Chu Kyung-ho, a seasoned economic bureaucrat, has been selected as the first economic chief to lead the economic team of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration. Former Jeju Governor Won Hee-ryong was surprisingly appointed as the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to lead real estate policy. Professor Lee Chang-yang of KAIST was nominated as the Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy to take charge of industrial economy.

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol held a press conference on the afternoon of the 10th at the transition committee office in Tongui-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul, announcing candidates for ministers of eight ministries in total.

Among them, the appointment of Representative Chu as Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs and Minister of Economy and Finance, leading the economic team, appears to be highly evaluated for his economic expertise and political acumen. Representative Chu is a traditional economic bureaucrat who served as the 1st Vice Minister of Economy and Finance and Director of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, and has long served as a whip of the National Assembly’s Planning and Finance Committee. Recently, he served as the party’s floor leader deputy, leading strategic planning and floor negotiations. President-elect Yoon said, "He has been highly evaluated for his planning and coordination ability regarding national issues," and added, "Based on his expertise in public office and legislative experience, I expect him to lay the foundation for our economy’s leap forward and to communicate smoothly with the legislature."

The surprise appointment of Won as Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport is evaluated as reflecting his strong ability to fulfill campaign promises. Won competed with President-elect Yoon in the People Power Party’s presidential primary but later served as the head of the policy headquarters of the election campaign, overseeing overall election policy pledges. During the presidential election, he also stood out by leading allegations related to the Daejang-dong scandal against Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate. His experience as Jeju Governor twice, where he contemplated balanced national land development, also seems to have influenced the decision. His innovative administration experience, such as the Jeju-type smart city and green city projects during his tenure as Jeju Governor, was also highly appreciated. President-elect Yoon said, "He is a person with a high understanding of real estate policy, a core area of public livelihood where fairness and common sense must be restored," and evaluated him as "the right person to stabilize the real estate market by sufficiently supplying housing where there is demand and to design balanced development and a metropolitan transportation system."

Professor Lee, nominated as Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, started his career in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and served as an administrative bureaucrat for 15 years handling trade and industrial policy. After entering academia, he became an expert in the field of technological innovation economics. As the secretary of the Economic Subcommittee 2 of the Presidential Transition Committee, he is designing overall industrial policy. Professor Lee’s nomination as the first Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy is interpreted as the Yoon administration placing significant emphasis on technological innovation and deregulation. President-elect Yoon said, "He is well known for his insight and perspective in the advanced industrial sector," and added, "Since he combines theory and practice, he is judged to be the right person to draw the blueprint for upgrading the industrial structure to overcome our economy’s low growth."

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