On October 7, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy Lee Hyoung Il held a meeting with representatives of six major business organizations at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI). During the meeting, he outlined recent economic developments and the government’s economic policy direction and called for cooperation from the business community.

Deputy Prime Minister Lee emphasized that “meaningful changes that businesses can actually feel begin with voices from the field,” adding that “policies can deliver tangible results when the government and the private sector work together on the ground to identify challenges and find solutions.”

He also noted that the government has visited business sites together with the six major business organizations to hear directly about challenges facing businesses and has incorporated measures to address them into major policy initiatives, including the first and second rounds of the “field-oriented measures to support business investment and innovation,” announced on August 13 and October 1, respectively. Against this backdrop, he underscored the importance of continued communication with the business community.

Deputy Prime Minister Lee explained that Korea’s economy has been gaining growth momentum despite challenging economic conditions, supported in part by the global semiconductor boom; at the same time, structural challenges remain, including continued pressures on people’s livelihoods amid inflation, a decline in potential growth due to the shrinking working-age population and stagnant productivity, and polarization across sectors.

He stated, “To take Korea to the next level as an ‘irreplaceable Korea,’ the government will strengthen policy efforts to raise potential growth and reduce economic polarization, and do our utmost to deliver tangible outcomes that people can feel in their daily lives.”

He further highlighted that the government will pursue large-scale, forward-looking investment in future growth areas through initiatives including the three mega-projects, while addressing on-the-ground obstacles to business investment to create a world-class business environment. At the same time, as part of efforts to reduce economic polarization, the government plans to mobilize all available resources and policy tools in three key areas of social policy: housing, employment and financial support for low- and middle-income households.

He also reaffirmed the government’s commitment to strengthening policy support for young people and called on the business community to “continue sharing its views and working with the government so that voices from the field can be fully reflected in policymaking.”

Representatives of the business organizations called for government cooperation to ensure that regulatory approvals, infrastructure and other necessary support are provided in a timely manner in line with corporate investment schedules. They also emphasized the need for tailored AI support for SMEs to help narrow disparities between large companies and SMEs. Regarding the extension of the retirement age, they proposed flexible approaches, including post-retirement reemployment, that would make use of the accumulated experience of older workers while preserving employment opportunities for young people.

The representatives also expressed hope that the launch of the new economic team would mark the beginning of a renewed growth trajectory and stated that they would continue to actively convey voices from the field through channels including the public-private council.

Please refer to the attached files.