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President Lee Jae-myung on the 30th instructed officials to "pursue a plan to convert reward points accumulated through card payments, shopping, and membership sign-ups into local currency" in order to accelerate the recovery of private consumption.
Speaking at a State Council meeting that doubled as an emergency economic review meeting held at the Blue House that day, President Lee said, "There are tens of trillions of won in hidden points that go unused because people don't know about them or can't use them." He added, "I ask the relevant ministries to actively review how to make use of these dormant, hidden points."
President Lee said, "Another foundation for creating sustainable growth momentum is genuine consumption capacity, or consumption vitality," explaining the measure. "Private consumption did show a recovery trend in the first quarter, but to accelerate it further, we need additional and varied measures to boost consumption," he said. He also stated, "In particular, efforts to increase the use of local currency, which has a strong effect on revitalizing traditional markets and neighborhood commercial districts, are absolutely necessary," and instructed that points be converted into local currency, noting, "This is one possible resource."
