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| ▲ President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with his senior secretaries at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on March 12, 2026. (Yonhap) |
(LEAD) Lee-senior aides
(LEAD) Lee urges extra budget to be swiftly prepared to stabilize people's livelihoods, prop up recovery
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By Yi Wonju
SEOUL, March 12 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday instructed his aides to swiftly prepare for an extra budget to help stabilize people's livelihoods and promote an economic recovery as the nation's economy is bracing for an impact from an intensifying war in the Middle East.
Lee made the call during a meeting with senior presidential aides, expressing concerns that heightening instability in the Middle East could weaken consumer and investment sentiment.
"We also need to swiftly inject funds to ensure that people's livelihoods and the economic recovery do not lose momentum, especially in times of crisis," Lee said. "A supplementary budget is unavoidable, so I ask that it be drafted as quickly as possible."
He urged officials to speed up the process of drafting the supplementary budget, which he said usually takes one to two months.
"We need wisdom not only in overcoming the current crisis on people's livelihoods but to use this crisis as a new opportunity for a major national transformation," Lee said.
Lee also stressed that the impact of a worsening economy falls far more heavily on vulnerable groups, saying such polarization exacerbates inequality.
"We shouldn't waste this golden hour to alleviate the economic shock on people's livelihoods, and we should mobilize all policy measures," he said.
He ordered a review of such measures, including freezing public utility fees in the first half of the year, expanding discount on agricultural, livestock and fisheries products, as well as providing fuel subsidies for farmers and expanding fuel tax cuts.
Lee also noted that the National Assembly was expected to pass a special bill on South Korea's US$350 billion investment pledge to the United States later in the day.
"I ask both the ruling and opposition parties to once again unite so that this crisis becomes an opportunity for a major transformation for our economy and industry," Lee said, voicing appreciation to the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) for its cooperation.
The legislation calls for laying out the procedures required to carry out Seoul's investments in the U.S., including implementing a set of memorandums of understanding and the establishment of a "strategic investment fund" for the $350 billion package.
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