President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a town hall meeting held at the Daejeon Convention Center in Daejeon, about 160 kilometers south of Seoul, on July 4, 2025. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, July 4 (Korea Bizwire) – President Lee Jae Myung on Friday called for balanced economic growth and regional development, as the nation grapples with slow economic growth and rising income equality.
Lee said business conglomerates, or chaebol, have helped South Korea achieve a developed nation at a time of rapid economic growth, but it is time to seek balanced growth.
“The strategy of concentrating development in specific sectors has reached its limits. We’ve seen the emergence of privileged classes, and many aspects of our society have fallen short of fairness and transparency,” Lee told a town hall meeting held in Daejeon, about 160 kilometers south of Seoul.
“We must create a healthy economic ecosystem where even large companies are kicked out of the market if they are inefficient, and where competitive small businesses have the opportunity to grow,” he said.
Lee also criticized the concentration of resources in the Seoul capital region, which has deepened the imbalance between the metropolitan area and the rest of the country.
“As all resources were funneled into the capital region, other areas have been pushed into a survival crisis,” he said.
(Yonhap)
