Blue House Postpones Meeting on Corporate Excess Profits

The Blue House unexpectedly postponed a meeting of President Lee's chief secretaries that was scheduled for 2 p.m. on July 20.

Typically held every Thursday, this week's meeting was moved up to accommodate a real estate policy forum on July 23, which President Lee is set to attend.

In a media announcement, the Blue House stated, "The major chief secretary meeting scheduled for today will not take place due to changes in the topic and schedule."

This meeting was expected to focus on the social distribution of corporate excess profits, with reports from the economic and social secretariats.

However, it appears the agenda was postponed due to the need for further discussion on the topic.

Some analysts suggest that the recent decline in the domestic stock market, triggered by semiconductor leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs), may also be a factor in the meeting's cancellation.

Choi Tae-won, chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, commented on the Ministry of Employment and Labor's proposal regarding AI (artificial intelligence) excess profit distribution, saying, "We have no reason to object to the government managing it with the taxes we pay, but while we need to do something to make stakeholders happy, I’m not sure if this (excess profit distribution) aligns with our thinking. I still don’t fully understand the concept."

During a press briefing at the Jeju Forum on July 18, Choi addressed the controversy over performance bonuses at SK Hynix, stating, "If everyone dislikes it, that’s a real problem, but I don’t see it that way. Let’s observe it a bit longer."

He emphasized, "Our country needs to operate under a political system of democracy and an economic system of capitalism, but if we can’t grow and one wheel isn’t turning, democracy will face issues as well. To ensure both wheels operate smoothly like in the past, we must return to growth policies. Only with growth can we have the leeway to address distribution issues."

Choi added, "I want to provide as much happiness as possible to our members, but there is a caveat: we must also ensure that stakeholders are happy. If the happiness of our members infringes on that of stakeholders, we need to address that issue for sustainable happiness."