South Korean President Lee Jae-myung: South Korean economy has started to improve.

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said on Tuesday that with the continuous easing of risks related to geopolitics and corporate governance, the South Korean economy has started to improve. The economic improvement has pushed the composite stock price index of the South Korean stock market to break through the 4,000-point mark. Lee Jae-myung said in his annual budget speech at the National Assembly, "Consumer confidence is improving, and the economy in the third quarter has shifted from a contraction in the first quarter to a growth of 1.2%, reaching a six-quarter high." "In the past five months, we have taken extraordinary measures with determination to deal with the severe economic crisis caused by the illegal martial law, and now we have overcome the crisis." South Korea's economy grew by 1.2% in the third quarter, with overall exports remaining strong despite the uncertainty brought by US tariffs. Domestic demand in South Korea is also improving, thanks to the Lee Jae-myung government's additional budget of over $20 billion, including two rounds of cash handouts that have stimulated consumption in the food and retail sectors. Lee Jae-myung proposed that government budget spending in 2026 will increase by 8.1% compared to this year, reaching 72.8 trillion Korean won, which is more than three times the growth of 2.5% in 2025. He said the government plans to support artificial intelligence, Korean culture and entertainment content, shipbuilding, and semiconductor industries to stimulate "economic transformation."