[Ù│┤ÙÅä] Economists mixed on 6 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 growth target

Aside from his nickname ÔÇ£the BulldozerÔÇØ for his determination to get things done, President Lee Myung-bak dubbed himself the ÔÇ£Economy PresidentÔÇØ during his run for office.

To live up to the name, he promised to generate 7 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 annual economic growth in the coming decade, raise KoreaÔÇÖs per capita income to $40,000 and to help Korea become one of the worldÔÇÖs top seven economies.

Amid a swirl of gloomy economic signs on both the domestic and international fronts, however, Lee has adjusted the 2008 growth target down to 6 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임.

마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 remains the highest prediction among a variety of institutions.

If it is achieved, it will be the most robust growth since the economy expanded 7 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 in 2002.

The Bank of Korea predicted growth of 4.7 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임, which could be lowered further.

BOK Governor Lee Seong-tae earlier this month suggested that economic growth will slow.

The latest average 2008 economic prediction for 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 from nine global investment banks, including JPMorgan, Lehman Brothers, Morgan Stanley, UBS and Citigroup, coincided with the central bankÔÇÖs.

And it is 0.3 percentage point lower than the average 5 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 projection compiled last August.

UBS presented the grimmest outlook.

SwitzerlandÔÇÖs biggest bank adjusted its 2008 economic growth forecast downward from 4.1 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 to 3.6 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 in late January.

ÔÇ£마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 faces challenges in 2008, and those challenges appear to be growing now that we expect a U.S.

recession this year,ÔÇØ said Duncan Wooldridge, a UBS 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임, in a report.

Export growth should slow in line with weaker demand from the United States, Europe and Japan.

Demand in all of Asia is likely to shrink due to the strong influence of global export cycles on domestic economies, according to the report.

Oh Suk-tae, a chief economist at Citigroup Korea in Seoul, said that the yearÔÇÖs growth target of 6 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 set by the incoming administration is ÔÇ£not likely to be achieved.ÔÇØ He lowered his initial growth forecast from 5.2 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 to 4.6 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 at the end of January.

But he said the forecast is still based on optimism for the Korean economy.

ÔÇ£We see the fallout from a sagging U.S.

economy driven by the U.S.

subprime crunch as limited.

This is based on our belief that the local economy has been decoupled from the U.S.

to some extent,ÔÇØ he said.

Kang Man-soo, who has been appointed Minister of Strategic Planning and Finance, a new ministry to be formed by consolidating the Ministry of Finance and Economy and the Ministry of Planning and Budget, recently admitted that the 6 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 target was based on the premise that the subprime fallout will ease.

To achieve the 6 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 target amid looming economic fluctuations and soaring raw material prices, especially for crude oil, LeeÔÇÖs new administration pledged to implement tax cuts, including lowering the corporate income tax by 5 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임.

Lee also plans to ease the long-held ceiling on the stakes that non-financial firms can buy in banks, as well as let conglomerates invest more freely in their affiliates.

Additionally, 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임ÔÇÖs corporate community insists that the Lee administration should intervene in the market by lowering key rates.

Recent research by the Korea International Trade Association, a leading business lobby, showed 58 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 of its member companies think an immediate cut in the key rate is necessary.

The association says fixing impending cash shortage problems is crucial.

Korea left the overnight call rate target for loans to commercial banks unchanged at 5 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 in February, largely because of soaring consumer prices and inflationary pressure.

For the past two months, consumer prices exceeded the central bankÔÇÖs year-on-year target range of 2.5 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 to 3.5 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임.

Price hikes are increasingly weighing on Korean households.

The consumer price index for basic necessities including food rose to a two-year high of 5.1 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 in January.

Prices of some agricultural products and other food items jumped more than 50 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임.

In contrast to 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임, the U.S.

Federal Reserve slashed interest rates by a historic 1.25 percentage points in a matter of eight days last month to stave off a possible recession caused by a depressed housing market and subprime-spawned credit upheaval.

The Fed is expected to keep cutting rates if needed to combat the adverse effects of a prolonged housing slump and a severe credit crisis, as Chairman Ben Bernanke said in mid-February.

Economist Wooldridge of UBS said that the Bank of Korea may need to reduce key rates by 0.25 percentage point as early as the second quarter and then another 0.5 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 in the latter half of the year.

That would lower the rate to 4.25 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 by the end of this year.

The 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 Institute of Finance advised that the central bank lower rates to prevent market instability stemming from wide interest rate differences with the United States.

ÔÇ£In light of foreignersÔÇÖ rush to the local bond market, the Bank of 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 should cut the interest rate in a pre-emptive manner,ÔÇØ the think tank said in a report.

ÔÇ£If the interest rate gap between Korea and the United States lasts for an extended period, 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 could become a destabilizing factor for the local bond market.ÔÇØ
Despite the bleak predictions, some analysts say Korea may benefit from the ÔÇ£Lee Myung-bak effect,ÔÇØ which may break through a variety of economic barriers.

Kim Chung-ho, president of the Center for Free Enterprise, said 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 is worth paying attention to the upbeat mood LeeÔÇÖs election created across the nation.

ÔÇ£Optimism is in the air.

Although 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 is hard to translate 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 into exact figures, people can definitely feel 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임,ÔÇØ Kim said.

ÔÇ£When the Korean economy posted 8 to 9 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 growth in the past, no one, even the computer-generated simulation program, predicted the country could achieve such a high figure.ÔÇØ
The Center for Free Enterprise is the Federation of Korean IndustriesÔÇÖ research arm.

The federation is a conglomerate business lobby group.

Kim added that up to 8 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 growth could be attained in four years, but only if the country opens its market further by taking chances, such as signing free trade agreements with the United States and Europe.

In a recent series of meetings with corporate leaders, Lee promised he would lift unreasonable restrictions in order to boost investment and form a more business-friendly environment.

In a move to attract foreign businesses, Lee named David Eldon, chairman of the Dubai International Finance Center Authority, as head of a special committee for strengthening national competitiveness.

Kwon Goo-hoon, the senior Korea economist at Goldman Sachs, also projected Korea could achieve 7 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 growth this year.

ÔÇ£The initial 7 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 growth target set by the incoming government seems ambitious, although not impossible.

마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 will require sweeping structural reforms, favorable external financing and deft handling of macroeconomic policy,ÔÇØ he said in a Feb.

11 report, where he stuck by his earlier forecast of 5 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임.

ÔÇ£We expect that the economy could grow at around 6 마카오 슬롯 머신 게임 per year in the midterm [of the Lee administration] without jeopardizing macroeconomic stability, if itÔÇÖs supported by timely investment deregulation and labor market reform,ÔÇØ Kwon said.

By Seo Ji-eun, Moon Gwang-lip Staff Reporters [spring@jooongang.마카오 슬롯 머신 게임kr]