[GLOBAL ECONOMIC TIMES]  Regarding this year's growth rate, Bank of Korea Governor Lee Chang-yong said on the 29th, "I think it will fall to around 2.2-2.3%."

Governor Lee attended the audit of the National Assembly's Planning and Finance Committee on this day and said, "There is a high possibility that this year's growth rate will be lower than 2.4% (the Bank of Korea's previous forecast)."

This means that the growth forecast, which was lowered from 2.5% to 2.4% in August, will be revised downward again.

Regarding the reason for the additional downward adjustment, Governor Lee said, "Exports did not fall in terms of value, but they did fall in terms of quantity." He added, "Quantity is not increasing due to temporary factors such as an automobile strike and competition with China in chemical products and semiconductors. “It seems to be the case, but the cause needs to be further analyzed,” he diagnosed.

In response to the opposition party members' point that 'the economic recession is continuing due to the failure to use fiscal policies such as interest rate cuts in a timely manner,' he said, "I cannot agree with the statement that the economy is in recession," and added, "Our country's gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate is 3%." “Even considering the quarterly figures, it is higher than the potential growth rate,” he countered.

He added, “There is no need for a full-scale economic stimulus,” adding, “If we actively stimulate the economy through interest rates, etc., there may be unintended side effects.”

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