FSC official calls for beefed-up financial market monitoring amid rising uncertainty

Vice Chairperson of the Financial Services Commission (FSC) Kim So-young, center, enters a market-monitoring meeting at the Central Government Complex in Seoul, May 18. Yonhap

Korea needs to keep close tabs on financial market situations with a "sense of crisis" that the many potential risks facing the country could turn into reality at any time, a top financial regulator said Wednesday.

Kim So-young, vice chairperson of the Financial Services Commission (FSC), made the remarks as he presided over his first market-monitoring meeting with officials from relevant organizations, including the Financial Supervisory Service and Korea Deposit Insurance, a day after taking office.

"With financial situations going through drastic changes, we need to carry out our tasks with a special sense of crisis that potential underlying risks in our financial markets and systems could become real at any time," Kim said.

"We will intensify our financial market monitoring so as to react timely, while closely monitoring potential risks for financial firms and also risks related to households and businesses," he added.

The meeting came as Korea's financial markets have seen increased volatility recently amid worries over the impact that high inflation and monetary tightening by advanced nations could have on economic growth.

Adding to the woes are the protracted supply chain disruptions due to the ongoing war in Ukraine and COVID-19 lockdowns in major cities in China. (Yonhap)