The government plans to supply a record amount of 170,000 tons of high-demand foodstuffs and provide a discount worth 70 billion won ($52.6 million) for the upcoming Chuseok holiday, the finance ministry said Wednesday.
They are part of a set of measures meant to better support the livelihoods of the people and to curb inflation ahead of the major traditional holiday, which also call for providing financial support to small and midsized companies and micro business owners.
According to the plan, the government will supply 170,000 tons of key holiday-related foodstuffs, a record amount, including cabbages, apples and pears, to help stabilize their prices.
Demand for vegetables, eggs and other foodstuffs usually rises in South Korea ahead of the holiday as people prepare holiday meals for family gatherings.
It will extend the tariff-rate quota scheme for 10 kinds of imported fruits, including bananas, mangos and pineapples, through the end of the year to lower tariffs and stabilize their prices.
The move will come under the country’s flexible tariff system, where the government temporarily adjusts basic tariff rates on imported goods to stabilize 한국을 prices and protect domestic producers.
A record amount of 70 billion won will be earmarked to support a discount of major agricultural and fisheries products for Chuseok.
A governmentwide task force will be set up to check prices of key items on a daily basis.
The plan also called for extending 43 trillion won of loans and other financial support to small and medium-sized enterprises.
The government will provide a discount on electricity bills for self-employed people with small businesses.
In an effort to help boost domestic demand, the government vowed to provide 500,000 discount coupons for accommodations and push for tax incentives for corporate spending regarding the holiday.
“Prices have largely been stabilized, and the economy is on a recovery track led by exports. But prices of farm produce and other Chuseok items are high due to the recent heat wave, and domestic demand remains weak,” Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok said during an economy-related ministers’ meeting.
“Policy priority will be on stabilizing prices and improving the economic situation for the people,” he added.
In July, consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, rose 2.6 percent on-year, picking up pace from a 2.4 percent increase a month earlier, on high prices of fruits and petroleum products.
The government has said that the country is projected to reach the target rate of 2 percent by around the end of 2024, though prices are forecast to ease at a slower pace than earlier expected.
