President Lee Jae-myung on the 30th said domestic prices for groceries and other daily necessities are at least 1.5 times higher than the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) average, and ordered a review of whether a "price adjustment order" could be imposed on monopoly and oligopoly corporations. He also said, "Policy cannot beat the market, but the market cannot beat government policy." He meant the government may need to wield compulsory authority to rein in high inflation.
At the cabinet meeting that day, President Lee asked Chairperson Joo Byung-ki of the Fair Trade Commission whether the government could issue a price adjustment order to corporations, noting that "in the United States, they often enforce breakups of monopoly and oligopoly corporations." He said sugar and flour are produced domestically yet are more expensive, adding, "If it is truly necessary from the perspective of protecting domestic industry, we should accept it, but if they are taking unfair profits and burdening the public with higher prices, there is no need to maintain such a system."
President Lee said, "Daily-life prices are higher than overall consumer prices, and among them, food prices are high. The point at which food prices began to rise is from early 2023, and we need to have a fundamental question about this," diagnosing the cause as a "lack of government role." This means the Yoon Suk-yeol administration did not even carry out its minimal regulatory duty over the market. He added, "If you loosen the reins too much, they collude, monopolize, bully, and rake in excessive profits."
He argued that major manufacturing corporations have created a monopoly and oligopoly structure to raise food prices and extract excessive profits. In response to President Lee's question on whether there is a current authority to order breakups, Chairperson Joo said, "There is none under the current Fair Trade Act," adding, "We can actively issue corrective orders." He also said consumer harm can be prevented by issuing corrective orders before a penalty surcharge, adding, "I understand that (a price adjustment order) is possible." President Lee replied, "If you are not exact or are unsure, you can tell me later."
He also pointed out that domestic fruit prices are higher than those abroad. President Lee said, "In the Joseon era, people who hoarded goods were executed, but controlling this is the government's role," and added, "There is no reason for fruit to rise, but prices are going up like when a goby jumps and even a sand smelt jumps. Let's find that (the cause)." He also ordered measures to address food issues for vulnerable groups, saying, "At the very least, I hope people in the Republic of Korea will not suffer over food."
He then cited the example of the "Just Dream Center" implemented during his tenure as Gyeonggi Province governor. It is a system that allows people to take as much food as they need without going through separate procedures such as income verification. President Lee said, "At the time, the media said (the wealthy) would come in a Mercedes and take everything, but that did not happen," and directed the Ministry of Health and Welfare to inform local governments of related cases under its lead.
Regarding this, Presidential Office Spokesperson Kim Nam-joon said it was "one of several opinions raised at the cabinet meeting," and added, "We believe the most important duty of the government is to solve the people's livelihood issues, and please see this as the president's resolve to take responsibility by using the full extent of the authority we have." However, noting that nothing specific was finalized at the meeting, he said, "We will announce additional developments as decisions are made."