Choo Kyung-ho: "Let's Resume Cooperation in Culture, Tourism, and Policy Coordination Following Korea-China-Japan Economic Ties"

The 23rd Korea-China-Japan Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-ho attended the 23rd "Korea-China-Japan Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting" on the 2nd and proposed, "Let us fully resume economic cooperation among the three countries not only in economic sectors such as finance, trade, and investment but also in various fields including tourism, culture, human exchange, and policy coordination, taking advantage of the global reopening."

The Korea-China-Japan Finance Ministers Meeting is a consultative body where the three countries pre-check the agenda of the ASEAN+3 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting and discuss economic cooperation measures among the three countries. Deputy Prime Minister Choo presided over the meeting as the chair, held face-to-face in Incheon Songdo for the first time in four years since 2019.

At this meeting, the three countries of Korea, China, and Japan shared the recognition that cooperation among the three countries is important to recover the economy quickly and sustainably from the pandemic, and discussed each country's economic trends and policy directions, as well as ways to strengthen regional financial cooperation.

Deputy Prime Minister Choo evaluated, "In a situation where global economic uncertainty continues due to increased volatility in the financial sector, persistent inflationary trends, geopolitical tensions, and the lingering negative effects of the pandemic, cooperation among Korea, China, and Japan will enable effective responses to the challenges faced by the three countries."

He emphasized, "In particular, considering the significant share the three countries hold in the ASEAN+3 region and the global economy, cooperation among the three countries can have a positive impact not only on Korea, China, and Japan but also on the ASEAN+3 region and the global economy."

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choo Kyung-ho is presiding over the Korea-China-Japan Finance Ministers' Meeting held on the 2nd at Oakwood Hotel in Songdo, Incheon.

"A New Turning Point... Strengthening Cooperation in Tourism, Workforce, and More Among the Three Countries"

Despite expectations that the environment surrounding the region, such as supply chain disruptions and rising prices, will not be favorable this year, the three countries forecast that their economies will maintain growth due to recovery from the pandemic and each country's policy efforts.

The three countries paid attention to the slowdown in economic relations such as the scale of trade in goods and services, and Deputy Prime Minister Choo explained that at this new turning point with the end of the pandemic and reopening, the three countries can contribute to economic recovery by expanding cooperation in economic and livelihood sectors such as tourism, workforce, and cultural exchange.

Deputy Prime Minister Choo said, "The Korean economy is gradually recovering after the second half of this year, and growth is expected to improve next year compared to this year," adding, "The Korean government prioritizes price stabilization in economic policy while making various policy efforts for economic recovery, including revitalizing exports and investment, boosting domestic consumption, regulatory innovation and creating quality jobs, expanding future growth engines and economic structural reforms, and ensuring fiscal sustainability."

Strengthening the Regional Financial Safety Net Among the Three Countries

The three countries continued discussions on the resource structure of regional financial agreements and new loan programs to strengthen the financial safety net. These discussions are based on reviews of other global and regional financial safety net cases and agreed that they should proceed in a direction that strengthens the effectiveness of the existing regional financial safety net, the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM). The three countries welcomed the efforts made so far regarding CMIM institutional improvements, such as establishing procedures for third-country currency provision, and agreed to continue discussions on reviewing the additional interest rate in the future.

Deputy Prime Minister Choo emphasized, "We need to improve the regional financial safety net so that it can play a practical role," adding, "It is important to review the resource structure, such as paid-in capital (funds raised through member countries' contributions), for this purpose." He also said, "Let Korea, China, and Japan take a leading role in discussions to strengthen the regional financial safety net," and "Korea will actively participate in discussions on CMIM institutional improvements."

Regarding the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO), the three countries agreed that continuous support for strengthening AMRO's capabilities is necessary through the implementation of the strategic direction 2030 established last December. Deputy Prime Minister Choo explained, "The three countries should focus on supporting AMRO's core functions, such as monitoring regional macroeconomic trends, supporting CMIM operations, and providing technical assistance to member countries."

The three countries decided that the ASEAN+3 Future Tasks Working Groups, which have served as chair for the development of the regional bond market, will lead related discussions to produce concrete results in the future. Deputy Prime Minister Choo requested the interest and active cooperation of the two countries in the Fintech regulatory regional common standards research and the open banking technology support project promotion plan currently underway in Working Group 4 led by Korea.

Meanwhile, the 24th Korea-China-Japan Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting is scheduled to be held in Tbilisi, Georgia next year.

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