Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Lee Hyung-il stated on October 6 that "if necessary, we will use surplus tax revenue to further reduce the scale of national bond issuance."
Lee made this remark during a National Assembly audit session of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, responding to a question from Democratic Party lawmaker Ahn Do-geol.
Ahn pointed out that the yield on U.S. 10-year Treasury bonds has risen to 5.28%, a level associated with financial crises, exerting significant downward pressure on financial markets. He inquired about measures to stabilize the market.
Another lawmaker from the same party, Yoon Hu-deok, also asked about the use of surplus tax revenue. Yoon noted that discussions are ongoing regarding the 63.2 trillion won in surplus tax revenue, including its potential use for a future response fund, reducing national bond issuance, and settling surplus tax revenue. He asked if the direction for utilizing surplus tax revenue was discussed at the macro-financial meeting on September 30.
In response, Lee explained, "The recent 5 trillion won reduction in bond issuance was also made possible by utilizing surplus tax revenue," adding that given the global rise in bond yields and the tight supply-demand situation in the domestic bond market, there was consensus on prioritizing the use of national bond issuance volume.
When Yoon asked if there are plans to reduce the issuance scale by 5 trillion won in October, as well as similar plans for November and December, Lee replied, "We will monitor market conditions and consider additional reductions if necessary."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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