President Moon Jae-in said it is safe to say that the South Korean economy has passed through the long, dark tunnel of the COVID-19 pandemic and is back on track to recovery.

Moon made the assessment at Tuesday's Cabinet meeting, referring to the Bank of Korea’s(BOK) estimate for the nation's economic growth in the first quarter indicating that economic data exceeded pre-pandemic levels.

The president attributed the recovery in exports, investment and private consumption to the concerted efforts by businesses and households.

He also expected the nation's recovery to continue and further accelerate in the second quarter, with the annual growth for 2021 reaching the mid- to upper-three-percent range.

Moon, however, stressed that no recovery or leap can be made without inclusion, calling for efforts toward easing inequality that has exacerbated amid the pandemic.