Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki has hinted at the possibility of reducing some of the red tap that local businesses face in order to help them overcome the COVID-19 crisis.  

In a meeting with senior officials of the Ministry of Economy and Finance on Monday, Hong urged them to come up with policy alternatives to boost corporate investment and household consumption. 

He mentioned a temporary waiver on corporate regulations as one such alternative, saying it will complement fiscal, financial and tax assistance for companies. 

Hong also instructed them to swiftly deliberate on matters regarding policies for the second half of the year, the government's third extra budget plan and South Korea's New Deal policies so they can be announced early next month as scheduled. 

The minister additionally asked the officials to work thoroughly in handing out one-off coronavirus relief payments to households and drawing up next year’s budget plan.