Prime Minister Han: "Our economy is still in a crisis, with top priority on inflation control"

[Financial News] Prime Minister Han Seong-sook said on the 2nd, "Our economy is still in a crisis. In addition to high oil prices and a weak won, the likelihood of interest rate hikes by major economies is also rising, so the government needs to respond closely."
At a meeting of the Emergency Economic Review Meeting at the Government Complex Sejong that day, Han said, "This is certainly not a time to let our guard down."
Han stressed, "First, we must focus our utmost efforts on managing prices, which are burdening people's livelihoods." She added, "Please prioritize price stability above all else by monitoring price trends for items closely tied to daily life in real time and swiftly and boldly implementing tailored supply and demand measures."
She also said, "We must pay attention to closing welfare blind spots to protect vulnerable groups." Han explained, "If the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety work together, I believe we can make a dramatic change in the welfare delivery system by actively using the government's public data and AI technology to identify at-risk households in advance."
Han said, "We should also prepare in advance measures to strengthen cooperation with the Middle East in anticipation of regional stabilization." She added, "Please work actively to revive exports to the Middle East, including general machinery and automobiles, while also identifying ways we can contribute to postwar reconstruction efforts. I also ask that efforts to improve our industry's supply chain system, whose weaknesses were exposed by this crisis, move forward without delay."
Han went on to say, "It will take quite some time before we overcome this crisis and our economy fully returns to normal." She added, "However, if the government continues to implement policies carefully and with a strong sense of urgency, as it has done so far, we will be able to overcome the crisis sooner."

syj@fnnews.com Seoyoung-jun Reporter