Outgoing finance minister calls for extension of Moon's signature Korean New Deal

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki speaks during his farewell meeting with journalists at the ministry in Sejong, Wednesday. Yonhap

By Yi Whan-woo

Outgoing Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki has expressed hope for the incoming government to maintain the Korean New Deal, a signature economic initiative of President Moon Jae-in.

Speaking at his farewell press conference at the ministry in Sejong, Wednesday, Hong's comment came amid rampant speculation that the new administration will most likely target the Korean New Deal in scaling down assistance for Moon's key economic projects.

Such speculation comes as President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol struggles to finance trillions of won in relief funds that had been promised to small business owners.

Accordingly, the incoming administration is seeking to squeeze out money from the 2022 budget worth 608 trillion won ($480 billion) approved by the Moon government.

“It is something that we will need to embrace after all considering the global trend and the domestic economic situation,” Hong said when asked about the fate of the Korean New Deal. “It may be on the list of the ongoing economic projects that are not prioritized by the next government, but even so, the direction and goals pursued through the initiative should be maintained.”

He went on to say the budget allotted for the Korean New Deal should be maintained as well.

Moon introduced the Korean New Deal in 2020, to foster digital technology and green energy that have been seen as key ways to revitalizing the economy in the pandemic era.

The Moon administration initially budgeted 160 trillion won to visualize the Korean New Deal by 2025 but later expanded the amount to 220 trillion won.

Hong picked the Korean New Deal among the three issues he finds most memorable from his term that has lasted for three and a half years.

The two others were the COVID-19 pandemic and Korea's response measures against Japan's export curbs.

Meanwhile, Hong's successor-to-be Choo Kyung-ho said he will not scale down assistance for Moon's ongoing economic policies over political differences.

Choo won approval from the National Assembly, Tuesday, after being nominated for the post in April.

During an Assembly hearing on Monday, Choo said whether to reduce such assistance will be made solely on an economic basis and that the economic projects initiated by the Moon government will be maintained as long as they have merit.