Yoon: "Let's Not Put on a Show... Policies Should Not Be Artificially Created" (Comprehensive)

-Before the Emergency Economic and Livelihood Meeting, "Let's show things as they are... Don't fabricate policies," urged
-Focused discussion on enhancing industrial competitiveness and boosting exports... Yoon "Will clearly explain support and promotion measures"

President Yoon Suk-yeol is arriving at the Yongsan Presidential Office Building in Seoul on the morning of the 27th, responding to questions from the press.

[Asia Economy Reporter Bae Kyunghwan] On the afternoon of the 27th, President Yoon Seok-yeol instructed his aides before the live broadcast of the Emergency Economic and Livelihood Meeting, saying, "Let's not put on a show, but show things as they are." In particular, President Yoon repeatedly emphasized, "Since it is a live broadcast, let's not artificially create or fabricate policies to show." The meeting will cover alternatives and detailed implementation plans from economic ministers to strengthen industrial competitiveness and increase exports.

According to the Presidential Office and government ministries, President Yoon recently asked some senior secretaries and ministers preparing for the live broadcast of the meeting, "Let's always prepare the Emergency Economic and Livelihood Meeting with sincerity and proceed as we have exchanged opinions before," urging them accordingly. A senior official from the Presidential Office explained, "The purpose is to reinforce the government's determination to overcome the economic crisis and convey sincerity to the public."

The Presidential Office confirmed that it received some preliminary discussion materials from ministries ahead of the meeting but did not exchange opinions. A government ministry official also said, "The report was concluded by briefly conveying only the topics," adding, "Questions and answers will be conducted in real time on site."

On the way to work that day, President Yoon said, "Ministers will explain various support and promotion measures so that those engaged in economic activities can have hope for the future and their economic activities are not contracted." Introducing the 11th meeting as "a meeting where each ministry presents and jointly reviews various policies to revitalize the economy and promote exports as corporate activities and investments shrink in the high-interest rate environment," he added, "The principle is to loosen regulations so that the market operates autonomously within a fair system, but when the economy is difficult, various real policies pushed by the government from behind are necessary, and I expect various discussions on exports, finance, and other areas to actively support industries rather than just respond to risks in financial policy."

The meeting is expected to focus on ways to enhance industrial competitiveness and promote exports across various fields to find new opportunities for the economy. The Deputy Prime Minister for Economy, Minister of Science and ICT, Minister of National Defense, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, Minister of Health and Welfare, Minister of Employment and Labor, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Minister of SMEs and Startups, Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, Vice Minister of Education, and Vice Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs are scheduled to attend. The Deputy Prime Minister for Economy will report on the economic revitalization strategy, followed by discussions on ▲export strategies for key industries ▲expansion of overseas construction and infrastructure orders ▲support for SMEs and startups ▲revitalization of tourism and content industries ▲development plans for digital and healthcare industries.

The Emergency Economic and Livelihood Meetings, held weekly since early July, started just four days after President Yoon proposed "to personally oversee livelihood issues." They have also been held on-site to listen to the voices of the people. The 10th meeting on the 7th was convened just two days after the 9th meeting. This was the first time the meeting was held twice in one week, reflecting the serious recognition of the recent economic situation. A Presidential Office official added, "It will be a time to put our heads together with the president on how to respond to the current risks."

Some view this occasion, where the president personally discusses economic risk response measures with his aides, as a breakthrough not only to revive the weakened economic sentiment but also to escape the downward trend in approval ratings. According to a Realmeter survey commissioned by Media Tribune, conducted from the 17th to the 21st with 2,512 adults nationwide, President Yoon's positive evaluation of his administration was 32.9%, down 0.2 percentage points from the previous week. Negative evaluations rose by 0.2 percentage points to 64.4%. In the Realmeter survey, President Yoon's approval rating fell to 31.2% in the fourth week of September amid controversies such as the ‘profanity incident’ during overseas trips, then slightly rebounded for two consecutive weeks before slightly declining again after three weeks.

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