South Korea's central bank chief said Thursday that two percent economic growth will not be easy to achieve this year after real gross domestic product(GDP) grew by just point-four percent in the third quarter.
Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol said at the National Assembly that two percent economic growth this year is not easy to foresee at present, but added it remains to be seen due to variables in the fourth quarter, such as the government's fiscal policy.
The remarks came when a lawmaker asked if Lee agrees that two percent economic growth seems difficult to achieve while growth at the one percent range seems inevitable.
South Korea has achieved at least two percent economic growth every year except for 1980, 1998 and 2009 due to an oil shock, the Asian financial crisis and the global financial crisis, respectively.
Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said that two percent growth is achievable if GDP grows by at least point-97 percent in the fourth quarter from the previous quarter. He said that the government will do all it can to achieve the target.
Regarding why growth slowed in the third quarter, Hong said that private sector recovery seems to have fallen short of expectations. He added that support measures by the government were insufficient, pointing out that it had executed a substantial portion of its spending in the second quarter.