President Lee Meets Nobel Laureate Howitt, Who Says Sound Fiscal Policy and Inflation, Growth Are Well Balanced

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[Financial News] President Lee Jae Myung met Peter Howitt, professor emeritus at Brown University and last year's winner of the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, at Cheong Wa Dae on the 15th. The meeting, held on Teachers' Day, was made more meaningful by the presence of Joon-Kyung Ha, Howitt's former student and senior presidential secretary for economic growth.
At the meeting, Lee told Howitt, who had supervised Ha's doctoral dissertation at Brown University, "I heard that you were the teacher of Senior Secretary Ha. You raised a talented student, and that has been a great help to state affairs in the Republic of Korea."
He added, "I am directly overseeing economic growth in the Republic of Korea, and we are probably focusing on growth through innovation, just as you have taught. Thanks to your indirect guidance through Senior Secretary Ha, the Republic of Korea now has the highest growth rate in the world in the first quarter of this year." Howitt replied, "I will gladly accept that as my responsibility or contribution," and Lee responded again, "The contribution is clear."
Howitt said, "What is truly impressive is that, while watching all of South Korea's policy implementation, you are maintaining a sound fiscal stance, minimizing the fiscal deficit, and also balancing inflation and growth targets well. Even in today's unstable and uncertain global environment, South Korea is delivering impressive results. Many countries around the world are facing headwinds, but there are not many that are navigating them as successfully as South Korea."
He added, "I think that is thanks to the president's leadership, and I would like to learn how such impressive results were achieved through our conversation today."
Howitt also said, "South Korea stands at the global forefront as an innovative country leading in artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors, and advanced technology industries, and it is rapidly pushing the boundaries of technology. The large conglomerates that have driven South Korea's economic growth for decades are also not resting on their achievements, but continuing to pursue a high level of innovation." He explained, "Research and development (R&D) is a key input that drives innovation, and when I looked at South Korea's R&D spending as a share of GDP, I found that it is the second highest in the world."
He went on to say, "Economic growth never happens automatically or on its own without active government policies that encourage and coordinate private companies' innovation activities. The government must provide some level of support. Under President Lee Jae Myung, I think it is very positive that incentives and financial support are being strengthened for startups and small and medium-sized enterprises, which are the main drivers of economic growth and creative destruction. I am also deeply impressed by the effort to ensure that the benefits of growth spread inclusively and that reasonable policies are put in place."
cjk@fnnews.com Choi Jong-geun Reporter