“New Government Will Prod Economic Growth”: Survey

Seven out of ten local manufacturers believe that the launch of the Lee Myung-bak administration will positively affect corporate investment and economic growth.

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry conducted a survey of 512 manufacturers, consisting of 155 large corporations and 357 smaller firms. According to the survey released yesterday, 68.1 percent of the respondents believe that the launch of the new government will positively affect Korea’s economic growth.

Only 2.7 percent answered that the launch of the new government would make a negative impact.

Asked about the impact of the new government’s policies on corporate investment, 67.8 percent answered that corporate investment would increase, while a mere 2.7 percent answered it would decrease.

When asked what should be done to encourage corporate investment, 54.2 percent chose deregulation of large corporations and the Seoul metropolitan area. The answer was followed by lowering tax including the corporation tax (26.9 percent) and improving labor flexibility (18.8 percent).

In terms of the annual average economic growth rate to be achieved under Lee’s leadership, 38.4 percent chose 5 percent-level economic growth. It was followed by 4 percent-level (32.6 percent), 7 percent-level (23.9 percent) and 6 percent-level growth (5.1 percent).

cha@donga.com