Hong Nam-ki

Hong Nam-ki (Korean: 홍남기; Hanja: 洪楠基; born 29 July 1960) is a South Korean politician currently serving as Minister of Economy and Finance and as an ex officio Deputy Prime Minister of South Korea under President Moon Jae-in from November 2018. Hong is considered a veteran technocrat working at mostly at budget-related departments under both conservative and liberal governments for over three decades.[1]

Hong Nam-ki
홍남기
Deputy Prime Minister of South Korea
Assumed office
10 December 2018
Serving with Yoo Eun-hae
PresidentMoon Jae-in
Prime MinisterLee Nak-yeon
Chung Sye-kyun
Preceded byKim Dong-yeon
Minister of Economy and Finance
Assumed office
10 December 2018
PresidentMoon Jae-in
Prime MinisterLee Nak-yeon
Chung Sye-kyun
Preceded byKim Dong-yeon
Minister for Government Policy Coordination
In office
11 May 2017 – 9 November 2018
PresidentMoon Jae-in
Prime MinisterLee Nak-yeon
Preceded byLee Seok-jun
Succeeded byNoh Hyeong-ouk
1st Vice Minister of Science, ICT and Future Planning
In office
18 January 2016 – 10 May 2017
PresidentPark Geun-hye
Prime MinisterHwang Kyo-ahn
Preceded byLee Seok-joon
Succeeded byMin Won-ki
Personal details
Born (1960-07-29) 29 July 1960
Chuncheon, South Korea
RelativesSee Namyang Hong clan
Alma materHanyang University
University of Salford
In this Korean name, the family name is Hong.
Hong Nam-ki
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationHong Nam-gi
McCune–ReischauerHong Namki

Before promoted to President Moon's second finance minister, Hong was his first Minister for Government Policy Coordination and previously president Park Geun-hye's vice minister for now-Ministry of Science and ICT.

His nomination as President Moon's next finance minister was strongly recommended by then-Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon whom Hong worked for as Minister for Government Policy Coordination.[2] Hong's predecessor, Kim Dong-yeon, also served as the head of OPC under previous administration before appointed as Moon's first finance minister.

As of September 2020, Hong is the second longest serving Minister of Economy and Finance after Yoon Jeung-hyun[3] and expected to override Yoon's record on 1 April 2021.[4] As of December 2020, Hong is also one of four people who continue to serve President Moon as cabinet minister or ministerial-level government official from the beginning of Moon's presidency in 2017 along with Kim Sang-jo, Suh Hoon and Kang Kyung-wha.

On several occasions, Hong expressed his disapproval of adopting Universal basic income as it only significantly worsens fiscal responsibility without effectively replacing the current social safety net and for this reason it is not adopted by any countries in the world.[5]

After the government and the ruling party led by Lee concluded not to lower the taxation threshold for "a large shareholder" from 1 billion won to 300 million won worth of stocks in a single company[6] upon strong opposition from the both sides of the political parties,[7] Hong submitted his resignation reasoning that "someone had to take responsibility on the debate that lasted for two months and on the current status of not pursuing this policy."[8][9] President Moon immediately rejected his resignation and reaffirmed him[10] citing that he is the right person to lead Korea's economic recovery.[11] In response to two petitions calling for Hong's removal from office due to this "shareholder issue," the Blue House reiterated that Hong and the government have committed themselves in economic recovery.[12][13]

In January 2021 Hong reiterated his stance on fiscal responsibility in response to growing discussions on the possible fourth covid-19 relief and financial assistance to businesses affected by the pandemic. Although Korea's debt-to-GDP ratio is relatively low compared to other developed countries, cumulative debt, according to Hong, is a burden to the future generations. He also emphasised that government spending is not a "widow's cruise" and therefore must be spent wisely even in this pandemic. Moreover, in an interview, he expressed his willingness to actively participate in such discussions as he has a solemn duty as the country's finance minister to "guard the storehouse (meaning country's budget)."[14][15][16][17][18]

Education

Hong graduated from Hangyang University with a bachelor degree in economics and MBA. He also holds a master's degree in economics from University of Salford[19] via Korean government fund for its employees' tertiary education in foreign countries.

References
  1. "새 경제수장 홍남기 내정자는 누구?…진보·보수정권서 靑 근무". hankyung.com (in Korean). 2018-11-09. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  2. "靑 "이낙연 총리가 홍남기 부총리로 강력 추천"(종합)". 연합인포맥스 (in Korean). 2018-11-09. Retrieved 2020-10-02.
  3. "홍남기, 두 번째 '장수 경제부총리'... 30일로 재임 660일째". www.sisa-news.com (in Korean). Retrieved 2020-10-12.
  4. 수정: 2021.01.25 09:53, 입력: 2021 01 25 06:00 (2021-01-25). "홍남기 "100조짜리 자영업 손실보상법, 현실적으로 불가"". news.khan.co.kr (in Korean). Retrieved 2021-01-25.
  5. 이준희 (2020-06-16). "홍남기 "기본소득 도입한 나라 없다…지금은 할 상황 아니다"". MBC NEWS (in Korean). Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  6. 김수연 (2020-11-03). "S. Korea to maintain stock taxation base for major shareholders: finance minister". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  7. "민주당 유예 주장…정부 '대주주 3억원' 입장 고수". 아시아경제 (in Korean). 2020-10-24. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  8. "홍남기 "대주주 논란 책임지고 사퇴"…與 "무책임" 질타 [종합]". hankyung.com (in Korean). 2020-11-03. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  9. "Hong tenders resignation, which President Moon rejects". koreajoongangdaily.joins.com. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  10. "South Korea's Moon Rejects Finance Minister's Offer to Quit". news.bloombergtax.com. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  11. "문 대통령 "홍남기 부총리, 경제회복 이끌 적임자…재신임"". www.hani.co.kr (in Korean). 2020-11-05. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  12. www.etnews.com (2020-11-10). "청와대, 홍남기 해임 국민청원에 "경제 모범국가 만들겠다"...사실상 거부". 대한민국 IT포털의 중심! 이티뉴스 (in Korean). Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  13. "[한줄뉴스] 靑 '홍남기 해임청원' 거부…"경제 적임자" 外". 연합뉴스TV (in Korean). 2020-11-10. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  14. "Finance Chief to Review Steps to Compensate Businesses Hit by Shutdowns". world.kbs.co.kr. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
  15. "홍남기 "곳간지기, 국민이 요청한 의무"…정치권과 힘겨루기 계속될 듯". 서울신문 (in Korean). Retrieved 2021-01-23.
  16. "홍남기 "전 국민 재난지원금→적자 국채→미래 세대 부담"". news.imaeil.com. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
  17. "Finance Minister: Too Early to Discuss 4th Round of Emergency Relief Handouts". world.kbs.co.kr. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
  18. 김수연 (2021-01-22). "Finance ministry faces tough calls over further spending amid pandemic". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
  19. "Ministry of Economy and Finance". english.moef.go.kr. Retrieved 2020-05-01.


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