Kim Nam-kuk questions Deputy Prime Minister Koo Yun-cheol at budget committee session

'Warmth of economic recovery must reach small businesses and youth'

Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kim Nam-kuk [provided by lawmaker's office]
Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kim Nam-kuk [provided by lawmaker's office]

Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kim Nam-kuk, who represents Ansan's first constituency in Gyeonggi Province, urged the government Wednesday to ensure the gains of macroeconomic recovery reach small businesses, self-employed workers and young people. Speaking at a plenary session of the National Assembly's Budget and Accounts Committee, Kim pressed Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Koo Yun-cheol and Ministry of Employment and Labor Vice Minister Kwon Chang-jun to improve the local gift voucher support system and strengthen career pathways for youth in the AI era.

Kim said macroeconomic indicators — including a semiconductor boom, a rebound in exports and a rising stock market — have been improving, but that small businesses in local commercial districts are telling a different story, with empty storefronts multiplying and sales down 30 to 40 percent. He said the gap between headline figures and what ordinary people actually feel cannot be ignored.

As one example, Kim cited the small-business confidence index for July, which fell to 55.6 — the lowest reading this year — with declines recorded simultaneously across all 17 cities and provinces nationwide. "The warmth of economic recovery is not fully reaching local commercial districts, small business owners and vulnerable groups," he said.

Koo said he agreed entirely with that assessment. "The warmth needs to reach young people, regional communities, small business owners, the self-employed and vulnerable groups," he said.

Kim identified livelihood recovery consumption coupons and local gift vouchers as the key policy tools for reviving neighborhood commercial districts. He also noted that of the central government's 1 trillion won ($723 million) budget for local gift vouchers last year, local governments spent only 794 billion won, leaving 205.5 billion won unspent.

Kim warned that requiring local governments with limited fiscal capacity to provide matching funds could cause regions that need local currency the most — areas with shrinking populations and weak finances — to abandon issuance altogether. He proposed reducing the local funding burden on fiscally vulnerable regions and distributing central government funds based on the degree of commercial district stagnation, consumer sentiment and spending performance in each area.

Koo said the government would do its utmost to find ways to make local gift vouchers more widely used, taking into account the fiscal capacity of each region.

Kim also called on the government to address youth employment challenges arising from the spread of AI. Vice Minister Kwon said the youth jobs problem is not a short-term issue but a structural one emerging from the broader shift toward AI-driven transformation. "Government policy must focus on — and be strengthened around — how to help young people build careers and connect those careers to actual jobs," Kwon said.

Kim said he viewed the government's overall direction on youth employment policy positively, but urged officials not to simply count how many short-term jobs had been created. "What matters is whether young people are actually moving into quality jobs — and that needs to be tracked over the long term, in one-year and three-year intervals," he said.

Kwon said the ministry would manage statistics along those lines and work with fiscal authorities to incorporate that approach into policy when drawing up next year's budget.

Koo added that because youth employment is a structural problem, the government must pursue structural solutions. He said the government would support young people's skills development by linking AI and semiconductor education with hands-on field experience and career management.


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