The finance chief said the economy had sustained its growth momentum after a robust first quarter.
"The likelihood of achieving 3 percent annual growth and per-capita national income of $40,000 this year has increased significantly," Koo said at a meeting in Seoul.
He then pledged to advance the government's so-called "3-4-5 vision," which targets potential growth of 3 percent, a place among the world's four largest exporters and per-capita income of $50,000.
South Korea's gross domestic product expanded 0.6 percent in the second quarter from the previous three months and 3.7 percent from a year earlier, according to preliminary data released by the Bank of Korea (BOK).
Growth slowed from the first quarter's 1.8 percent pace but remained firm as semiconductor-led exports and private consumption offset continued weakness in construction.
Exports increased 1.4 percent from the previous quarter and private consumption rose 0.4 percent, while construction investment declined 0.2 percent.
Real gross domestic income, which reflects changes in purchasing power caused by shifts in trade prices, rose 3.6 percent from the previous quarter and 15.6 percent from a year earlier.
Koo also pledged to contain inflation as renewed tensions in the Middle East threaten to raise oil prices and disrupt supply chains.
The government will extend fuel-tax reductions through the end of September and maintain restrictions against the hoarding of urea and urea solution through August.
It will ease inventory and sales restrictions on syringes and needles as supplies improve and introduce legislation next month to strengthen penalties for hoarding and allow confiscated goods to be released into the market.
Despite the stronger headline figures, annual growth of 3 percent would not necessarily indicate robust momentum through the second half.
The BOK has said the economy could still grow 3 percent this year even if GDP contracted by an average of 0.1 percent in each of the third and fourth quarters, reflecting the unusually strong expansion already recorded in the first half.
Construction weakness and an uneven recovery outside the semiconductor industry therefore remain potential drags even if the annual target is reached.
The prospect of per-capita gross national income reaching $40,000 is also heavily dependent on the exchange rate.
Per-capita GNI rose 4.6 percent in won terms last year but increased only 0.3 percent in dollar terms to $36,855 as the currency weakened.
Crossing the $40,000 threshold this year would require an increase of about 8.5 percent in dollar terms, meaning continued won weakness could offset growth in domestic nominal income.
The central bank said in March that, assuming no exchange-rate effect and annual GNI growth of 4.4 percent, the average since 2014, South Korea would surpass $40,000 in 2027 rather than this year.
Even reaching the threshold would not necessarily translate into comparable gains for middle- and lower-income households because GNI includes income earned by companies and the government and divides the total by the population.
Average monthly household income rose 2.4 percent from a year earlier in the first quarter but increased only 0.4 percent after inflation, while earned income grew just 0.3 percent in nominal terms.
Disposable income increased 2.7 percent, but consumption spending climbed 5.3 percent, reducing the average household surplus by 3.1 percent.
Income-distribution indicators also deteriorated in 2024, with the Gini coefficient rising to 0.325 and the income ratio between the richest and poorest fifths widening to 5.78.
The relative poverty rate, which measures the share of people living on less than half the median income, rose 0.4 percentage point to 15.3 percent.
Annual growth of 3 percent and per-capita GNI of $40,000 would mark significant milestones for the size of the Korean economy, but broader improvements in living standards will depend on whether export and corporate income spreads into wages and household disposable income.
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