Finance minister says downturn abating but cautions against optimism

SEOUL, April 29 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's economic downturn is easing, but it is
still too early to be overly optimistic as exports and domestic demand are taking
more time to fully recover, the nation's top economic policymaker said Wednesday.

"The pace of the economic downturn is easing slightly but the overall direction
still points downward. It is too early to become optimistic under current
conditions," Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun told a weekly crisis management
meeting in central Seoul.
Yoon cited sluggish exports, weak corporate investment in facilities and anemic
consumption as drags on the economy is expected to lapse into its first
contraction this year in more than a decade.
"Exports have not fully recovered and it will take more time before facility
investment and private consumption pick up as labor markets are in a slump," he
said. "Additionally, economies in major countries such as the U.S. and Europe
have yet to turn around."
His remarks come as some experts are cautiously raising hopes that the economy,
Asia's fourth-largest, could recover at a faster-than-expected pace as some
indicators are showing that the worst is nearly over.
Buffeted by a protracted global downturn, the South Korean economy is feared to
contract 2.4 percent this year, the first minus growth in more than a decade,
according to the latest prediction by the central bank.
Last month, the government unveiled a series of stimulus measures including a
28.9 trillion won extra budget aimed at kick-starting the slumping economy.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
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