President Lee calls for active investment to overcome crisis

By Byun Duk-kun
ASTANA, May 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak called on South
Korean businesses Wednesday to more actively look for investment opportunities in
Korea and abroad, saying that is what will see their country through the global
economic crisis and ensure their future competitiveness.
"Every economy is experiencing difficulties in the face of the global financial
crisis, but I believe our economy is showing relatively more positive signs than
other countries because our businesses have successfully cut into various markets
throughout the world," the president said in a meeting here with South Korean
business representatives accompanying him.
Lee arrived here Tuesday as part of a two-nation Central Asia trip that also took
him to Uzbekistan on a three-day state visit. He will hold talks with Kazakh
President Nursultan Nazarbayev here later Wednesday.
The president's remarks were in line with the government's earlier forecast that
the South Korean economy, the world's 13th largest, could start to recover as
early as in the latter half of the year.
Lee, however, cautioned against premature optimism.
"The government is taking the crisis very seriously. Even if the conditions start
to improve, we will continue to see repercussions of the crisis for another one
or two years," he told the breakfast meeting.
The president urged Korean businesses to seek opportunities, saying there will
always be new, uncontested, or "blue ocean," markets even in the most difficult
times.
"Especially the two countries here (Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan) are those that
have an abundance of natural resources we need," Lee said.
"Our advances into the two countries will mean not only our presence in their
markets, but also securing a gateway to neighboring nations such as Russia," he
added.
bdk@yna.co.kr
(END)