Seoul unveiled a major Cabinet reshuffle, naming First Vice Finance Minister Lee Hyoung-il as the new deputy prime minister and minister of economy and finance.
The administration also tapped ruling Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Seung-won to lead the Ministry of Justice, and named Kang Shin-chul, former deputy commander of the South Korea-US Combined Forces Command, as the new defence minister, presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik said in a televised address.
The reshuffle of the Cabinet comes as President Lee Jae-myung’s administration seeks to revitalise its policy momentum as it enters its second year, at a time when analysts are questioning the sustainability of his expansionary fiscal policies amid a rout in the local bond market.
Lee Hyoung-il, a career technocrat who has held the vice finance minister position since June last year, inherits an economy running hotter than expected and will be working with a central bank that is now tightening policy as the government is expected to boost fiscal spending for the year ahead. — Reuters
