ID :
45369
Thu, 02/12/2009 - 21:12
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/45369
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Seoul seeks 20 tln won stimulus package by April
By Byun Duk-kun
SEOUL, Feb. 12 (Yonhap) -- South Korea is seeking to inject up to 20 trillion won
(US$14.3 billion) to stimulate its troubled economy by the end of April as
forecasts suggest the national economy could shrink by as much as 4 percent this
year, an official said Thursday.
The move comes as new Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun said this week that the
economy could contract 2 percent this year. The International Monetary Fund
earlier said the Korean economy could shrink by up to 4 percent in 2009.
The stimulus money will come from a government supplementary budget that will be
put together before the end of next month.
"The plan is to have the supplementary budget reviewed by the National Assembly
during its extraordinary session in April," an official at the presidential
office told reporters.
The official said the stimulus package will likely call for 15-20 trillion won to
help ease a credit crunch crash-landing on many of the country's
small-and-medium-sized (SMEs) businesses.
Yoon did not specify the amount of extra budget sought, but market observers have
said it will have to be at least 10 trillion won to have any effect on the
market.
The effort to secure the extra budget -- often called the "autumn supplementary
budget" because of the season it is usually formed -- as early as in spring
indicates the urgency of bringing the economic crisis under control.
The National Statistic Office said Wednesday that over 100,000 jobs disappeared
in January, only one month after the country lost 12,000 jobs in what was then
the first and largest contraction since 2003.
The country's central bank, the Bank of Korea, says the economy shrank 5.6
percent in the final quarter of last year from the previous quarter, the sharpest
drop in more than a decade.
Part of the money will likely go to extending payment guarantees on all loans
made to SMEs, a measure announced by Seoul earlier Thursday as an apparent effort
to end the negative cycle of liquidity shortages was followed by additional
bankruptcies.
The measure will help roll over all 30.9 trillion won worth of SMEs-owned loans
that are due before the end of 2009, according to the Financial Services
Commission.
bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)
SEOUL, Feb. 12 (Yonhap) -- South Korea is seeking to inject up to 20 trillion won
(US$14.3 billion) to stimulate its troubled economy by the end of April as
forecasts suggest the national economy could shrink by as much as 4 percent this
year, an official said Thursday.
The move comes as new Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun said this week that the
economy could contract 2 percent this year. The International Monetary Fund
earlier said the Korean economy could shrink by up to 4 percent in 2009.
The stimulus money will come from a government supplementary budget that will be
put together before the end of next month.
"The plan is to have the supplementary budget reviewed by the National Assembly
during its extraordinary session in April," an official at the presidential
office told reporters.
The official said the stimulus package will likely call for 15-20 trillion won to
help ease a credit crunch crash-landing on many of the country's
small-and-medium-sized (SMEs) businesses.
Yoon did not specify the amount of extra budget sought, but market observers have
said it will have to be at least 10 trillion won to have any effect on the
market.
The effort to secure the extra budget -- often called the "autumn supplementary
budget" because of the season it is usually formed -- as early as in spring
indicates the urgency of bringing the economic crisis under control.
The National Statistic Office said Wednesday that over 100,000 jobs disappeared
in January, only one month after the country lost 12,000 jobs in what was then
the first and largest contraction since 2003.
The country's central bank, the Bank of Korea, says the economy shrank 5.6
percent in the final quarter of last year from the previous quarter, the sharpest
drop in more than a decade.
Part of the money will likely go to extending payment guarantees on all loans
made to SMEs, a measure announced by Seoul earlier Thursday as an apparent effort
to end the negative cycle of liquidity shortages was followed by additional
bankruptcies.
The measure will help roll over all 30.9 trillion won worth of SMEs-owned loans
that are due before the end of 2009, according to the Financial Services
Commission.
bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)
