The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said on the 24th it has named Lee Si-wook, former head of the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP), to lead a newly established economic research division aimed at strengthening research capacities in the economy and industry. (Photo)
Lee recently passed the employment review by the Government Public Officials Ethics Committee and, after related procedures, is set to begin work at KORCHAM on Sept. 1. Lee will comprehensively lead KORCHAM's research functions in the economy and industry and take on the role of enhancing expertise and policy recommendations on major economic issues.
The economic research division Lee will lead was created earlier this year following controversy over a press release on inheritance tax. At the time, KORCHAM said 2,400 high-wealth individuals had left Korea due to inheritance tax burdens, but the cited report by a U.K. immigration consulting firm did not directly mention inheritance tax, creating a problem. President Lee Jae-myung publicly criticized it as "fake news," and after an audit by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, KORCHAM moved to overhaul the organization.
Lee is an economics expert who graduated from Yonsei University's department of economics, earned a master's in applied economics from Université Paris 9 in France, and a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Michigan in the United States. He served as a research fellow at the Korea Development Institute (KDI), a professor at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management, and president of the Korea International Trade Association, before serving as head of KIEP starting in 2023.
A KORCHAM official said, "With the recruitment of Lee, who has proven outstanding capabilities through extensive experience in academia and state-funded research institutes, we expect KORCHAM's economic research and policy recommendation functions to become more sophisticated," adding, "We will present practical alternatives that represent the business community on the rapidly changing global trade environment and domestic industrial issues."