SEOUL, April 11 (AJP) - South Korea has approved a 26.2 trillion won supplementary budget on Saturday, authorizing a massive injection of liquidity to shield households and industry from the volatility of a prolonged Middle East war. Prime Minister Kim Min-seok presided over an extraordinary cabinet meeting at the Government Complex Seoul to finalize the spending package, which cleared the National Assembly late Friday night. The legislative consensus marks a rare moment of bipartisan cooperation as the administration of Lee Jae Myung moves to counter mounting inflationary pressures.
This second supplementary budget of the current administration signals a shift toward aggressive fiscal interventionism. By targeting the bottom 70 percent of earners with direct cash transfers and instituting caps on energy prices, the government is attempting to construct a firewall between the domestic economy and global geopolitical instability. The measure arrives as surging oil prices threaten to derail a fragile recovery and erode the purchasing power of low-income families.
Under the approved plan, 32.56 million citizens will receive high-oil-price relief payments ranging from 100,000 won to 600,000 won. The government has allocated 4.8 trillion won for these specific grants. Recipients of basic livelihood benefits and near-poverty households are slated to receive their first disbursements within the month, while the remaining eligible population will be processed following a review by a specialized inter-departmental task force.
To stabilize a market rattled by supply chain disruptions, Seoul has set aside 4.2 trillion won to support a maximum price system for petroleum. This industrial shield is bolstered by subsidies designed to cover the price differential for imported naphtha, a critical feedstock for the petrochemical sector. Public infrastructure also receives a temporary boost; the K-Pass public transportation discount will be doubled to 50 percent to lower commuting costs for the working class.
The budget further extends a lifeline to the primary sector, providing fuel-linked subsidies to farmers and fishers who have seen their margins vanish under the weight of rising diesel costs. Additional funds are dedicated to easing the fuel burden for coastal passenger vessels, ensuring that essential transit links to island communities remain viable.
The supplementary budget was submitted to the legislature on March 31 as regional tensions in the Middle East escalated. Following intense negotiations, the ruling and opposition parties reached a final agreement during the plenary session on April 10.
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