"Politics Is Dragging down the Economy'
Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Park Yong-man criticized the Moon Jae-in administration and lawmakers as being incompetent and irresponsible, saying that politics is dragging down the economy.
“South Korean enterprises are going through difficulties in the middle of the trade war between the United States and China, and yet the government and lawmakers are adding to the difficulties without reforming the labor market and abolishing unreasonable regulations,” he said, adding, “At present, Japan is getting even with us in a very elaborate way and based on inter-ministerial coordination, but we are busy blaming each other.” He went on to say, “South Korean manufacturers’ export conditions are deteriorating with both the United States and China resorting to trade protectionism and the government is continuing to respond belatedly.”
It is said that the Japanese government selected three items subject to export restrictions against South Korea after examination of hundreds of semiconductor and display materials and months of studies on how to best strike South Korea while minimizing damage to Japanese companies. In contrast, the South Korean government’s current response is nothing but WTO litigation, which is deemed to lack effectiveness.
“I’m uncomfortable every time they mention economic crisis, and now is the time they should make more effort to minimize their interference with the economy,” he said.