Jang Dong-hyuk, leader of the People Power Party (PPP), South Korea's ruling party, said Wednesday that "a supplementary budget for economic stimulus cannot drive economic growth."
In a Facebook post, Jang noted that "the OECD lowered its growth forecast for Korea from 2.1% to 1.7% and raised its inflation forecast by as much as 0.9 percentage points, from 1.8% to 2.7%," adding that "even this projection is premised on stability in the Middle East."
"We must implement proper measures in response to a prolonged crisis," he said, urging the government to "concentrate support where it is most needed — aid for affected businesses and farmers and fishermen, responses to high oil prices, and livelihood support for ordinary citizens — while also actively pursuing exchange rate measures such as a dollar swap arrangement with the United States."
"Election-driven cash handouts will only accelerate inflation," Jang added.