Gov't Monitors Impact of US Subprime Defaults
The government has called a series of emergency meetings to monitor the impact of U.S. subprime mortgage woes on the Korean and global economy.
On Friday afternoon, officials from the Finance Ministry, the central bank and financial watchdog discussed the impact of U.S. subprime mortgage defaults on global financial markets.
Next Monday, the government will hold a financial policy meeting to assess the impact of subprime defaults on the domestic economy and potential liquidity problems that could result.
A Finance Ministry official told reporters Friday that the subprime issue would have only a limited impact on the Korean economy, as domestic financial institutions hold just a small amount of U.S. mortgage bonds.
He added that the meetings have been called to monitor the impact of the fallout.
Currently, Korean banks hold 650 million dollars' worth of U.S. subprime mortgage bonds.
The Finance Ministry has been stepping up its monitoring of the U.S. subprime loan situation on concerns over a potential credit squeeze.
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