South Korea president calls for measures to respond to rising prices

SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korean President Lee Jae-myung on Monday called for measures to stabilise prices, saying the increasing cost of living is causing “too much pain”.

The newly elected leader, who has prioritised economic recovery, made the comments at an economy taskforce meeting with officials.

“Prices are causing too much pain for the people, so please check the current situation and see if there are any possible measures and report them even before the next meeting,” Lee said, referring to higher prices of instant noodles.

Prices of chicken and eggs have risen since an outbreak of avian flu in Brazil, a vice finance minister told Lee during the meeting.

The government has restricted chicken imports from avian flu-affected areas in Brazil.

The left-leaning president has been widely tipped to usher in an era of fiscal expansion to boost cash subsidies and welfare, aiding economic growth albeit by increasing debt supply.

Asia’s fourth-largest economy contracted in the first three months of the year as exports and consumption stalled amid fear over the impact of U.S. tariffs, fanning expectations interest rate cuts.

Lee said he would also discuss an extra budget at the Monday meeting.

(Reporting by Ju-min Park and Cynthia Kim; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Christopher Cushing)

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