Yoon appoints new senior secretaries in 3rd year in office

Lee Kwan-seop [Photo by Lee Seung-hwan]

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to nominate individuals to serve key economic roles, including the Minister of Economy and Finance, as he enters his third year in office.

On Thursday, the presidential office announced two key appointments.

Lee Kwan-seop, currently serving as the senior secretary for government affairs, has been appointed as policy director at the office, and Park Chun-sup, a monetary policymaker of the Bank of Korea, as senior secretary for economic affairs.

Choi Sang-mok, former senior presidential secretary for economic affairs, is being named as the potential candidate for the Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance.

According to sources familiar with the administration, there is little concern regarding the new economic team.

Lee and Choi have collaborated in the presidential office since Yoon took office last year. They have jointly formulated key policies with a shared principle. Lee has held prominent positions such as head of energy resources and head of industrial policy at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

Choi and Park have a history of working together in 2016 and 2017 at the Ministry of Economy and Finance. In their respective roles as vice minister and budget director, they established a working relationship. Park placed a strong emphasis on fiscal reliability during her tenure as budget chief.

Addressing key challenges, the new figures are expected to focus on inflation and economic growth.

Effectively bringing down interest rates to normal levels is also crucial, experts say. With prospects of a potential end to U.S. interest rate hikes, the substantial loan rates of up to 5 percent still pose a significant challenge to household borrowers.

Addressing low growth and exploring new growth engines is an urgent task. Although Korea’s current growth rate hovers in the low 1 percent range for this year, projections indicate an increase to 2 percent next year.

However, the Korean economy is at risk of falling short of the potential growth forecast. Many experts advocate for more assertive regulatory reforms to bolster the growth rate.

Sung Tae-yoon, professor of economics at Yonsei University, called on the new economic team to undertake comprehensive regulatory reforms, including pension and labor.

Managing heightened risks in financial markets, such as the potential collapse of real estate project finance and recent issues with equity-linked securities, is deemed essential, according to Sung.