The Ministry of Strategy and Finance announced on the 7th that it hosted the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Deputy Finance Ministers and Deputy Governors of Central Banks meetings in Gyeongju from the 5th to the 7th and presented core tasks such as innovation, finance, and fiscal matters.
This meeting is the first one hosted by South Korea this year as the chair of the Finance Ministers' meeting, confirming the agenda and work plan to discuss economic and financial cooperation among APEC members in 2025.
Bom Kim, Deputy Minister of Strategy and Finance, emphasized during the opening remarks on the 6th, "Let us work together to find solutions for sustainable growth and shared prosperity in the face of a global transformation."
The core tasks presented for this purpose include ▲promoting innovation as a new growth driver ▲balancing innovation and stability in the financial market ▲enhancing the sustainability and efficiency of fiscal policy.
Choi Ji-young, Director of International Economic Management at the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, and Kwon Min-soo, Deputy Governor of the Bank of Korea, presided over the plenary session.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF), Asian Development Bank (ADB), and APEC Policy Support Unit (PSU) presented on global and regional economic trends, forecasts, and risk factors.
In sessions related to the three core capabilities of innovation, finance, and fiscal policy, APEC members, along with the World Bank (WB), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), shared leading cases and discussed future cooperation.
The South Korean delegation introduced the agenda and work plan for the 2025 Finance Ministers' meeting, along with plans to establish a new roadmap for the outcomes of the Finance Ministers' meeting. They emphasized that the detailed Cebu Action Plan, which was planned at the 2015 Finance Ministers' meeting in the Philippines, concludes this year, making a new roadmap necessary.
The South Korean delegation proposed a total of four pillars: ▲growth through innovation ▲resilient and innovative finance ▲sustainable and efficient fiscal policy ▲inclusive, future-oriented economy.
Along with this, they urged APEC members to actively participate by forming a working group. The members expressed agreement on the need to establish a new roadmap and their intention to cooperate actively.
Meanwhile, a high-level financial management meeting will be held in Jeju from May 7 to 9, and the Finance Ministers' meeting and the Structural Reform Ministers' meeting will take place in Incheon from October 19 to 23.
The government stated, "Based on the agenda and work plan confirmed at the meeting, we will do our best as the chair to ensure that practical outcomes for economic and financial cooperation among members can be derived at the October Ministers' meeting."