Lee urges business leaders to help counter financial crisis through investment

By Byun Duk-kun
SINGAPORE, Nov. 13 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak called on
business representatives from around the Asian-Pacific region to help fight the
global economic crisis through aggressive investment and job creation.
The world economy is beginning to show signs of a slow recovery, but it is still
not time for countries or their business leaders to be complacent, Lee said.
"At a time when the world economy is showing signs of recovery, what we must be
most cautious about is complacency toward our own efforts to reform," he said in
a keynote speech at a CEO summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).
Lee arrived here earlier Friday for the annual APEC summit that will also be
attended by the leaders of 20 other states or economies around the Pacific rim,
including U.S. President Barack Obama, Chinese President Hu Jintao and Japanese
Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama. The summit will end Sunday.
The South Korean president said what the world most needs now, at a time when
businesses can benefit the most from the money they spend, is continued or
increased investment from private businesses.
"Also at last year's APEC CEO summit in Lima, I stressed that you, our business
leaders, need to be more challenging and to exercise entrepreneurship in times of
crisis to prepare for what comes after the crisis," Lee said.
"I truly hope more jobs will be created through your active investment, which
will then lead to an increase in spending, thus reviving the market and
strengthening its basis. That is how you can personally take part in the efforts
to fight the global economic crisis and secure sustainable, post-crisis growth,"
the president added.
Lee said the world's political leaders will continue to support their business
leaders through closer cooperation and joint efforts at international
organizations, such as the APEC and the G-20 economic summit, which will be
chaired by South Korea next year.
"In such a time of a highly integrated global economy, it is needless to say that
international cooperation is more important than ever before. Therefore, we can
say the G-20 summit process that provides the venue and framework for such
international cooperation not only benefits the 20 member nations of the G-20,
but all countries around the world," President Lee said.
bdk@yna.co.kr
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