Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki told reporters Tuesday the government is considering a supplementary budget in line with International Monetary Fund(IMF) recommendations. 

After meeting with heads of eight research institutes on Tuesday, Hong said if the government decides to allocate an extra budget to tackle fine dust pollution, the ministry will consider a supplementary budget at the same time. 

The IMF is suggesting Seoul draw up a significant supplementary budget equivalent to point-five percent of the nation’s gross domestic product(GDP), or about eight-point-nine trillion won. 

Hong emphasized that the IMF supplementary budget is only a suggestion, and that it is too early to announce a decision on it while deliberations are underway.