Sharp Decline of Unemployed Workers Makes Visible the Possibility of Economic Recovery

CheongWa Dae officials including Lee Ki-Ho, senior presidential secretary for economic affairs, begun to openly express the view of economic recovery.

Lee said in a press meeting that ``Korea`s economy is showing the symptoms of recovery such as the increase of the newly established companies, the rise of consumption, and the continuous increase of BSI.`` Lee strongly expressed the view that domestic economy is getting out of the depressed phase.

Lee also said that ``the number of unemployed workers is estimated to have dropped by 3 percent level to about 800,000 at the end of April, as the jobless workers sharply decreased during April. The number of unemployed workers broke through one million at the end of March. The unemployed will possibly fall down to about 700,000 in June.``

Regarding this, other senior secretary of Cheong Wa Dae told that ``if composite stock index passes over 600 point, the economy will enter into the full-fledged recovery phase by instigating consumer`s desire.``

Senior secretary Lee prospected that ``in May, the increase rate of consumer price will be 5 percent level year-to-year, even though it may be stabilized in month-to-month comparison. But in the third quarter, it will drop to 3-4 percent level year-to-year.``

Kwon Soon-Hwal shkwon@donga.com