The main opposition People Power Party has criticized the government for the weak local currency and rising prices, claiming that President Lee Jae Myung has been preoccupied with blocking his trials and has missed the crucial window to tackle pressing economic issues.
 
Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok said Monday during the party’s Supreme Council meeting at the National Assembly that the incompetence of the Lee administration is to blame for the weak won and high inflation.

He pointed out that the won’s real effective exchange rate had fallen to its lowest in over 16 years as of late October, weakening its purchasing power in international trade.

Jang also claimed that the government’s reckless expansionary fiscal policies have contributed to rising prices and urged change.

Floor leader Song Eon-seog said that the government’s aggressive push for expansionary fiscal policy has led to an increase in wasteful spending, which in turn has raised liquidity in the won market and the national debt, creating a vicious cycle that appears to be weakening the local currency.

Song said that the won’s depreciation reflects structural distrust in the South Korean economy and that the solution is not indiscriminate spending but rather structural reform.