| Foreign economic expects, who participated in a recent meeting organized by the Presidential Council on National Competitiveness led by Sagong Il, reportedly expressed their concerns by saying, “Who would invest in Korea when illegal demonstrations are taking place in the center of Seoul?”
According to the meeting minutes made by a council member, foreign experts said on the U.S. beef controversy and the candlelight vigils, “It is hard to understand” or “It surprised the entire world having sprung out of the blue.”
A foreign economist said, “Amid intensifying competition (between nations) to become Asia’s financial hub, many financial institutions in Asia are saying that there are investment destinations other than Korea. That means that they don’t think there is a change (that can attract investment) going on in Korea.”
Another economist said, “(The candlelight vigils) are forming a very negative image of Korea among international investors. None of the foreign investors I recently met wanted to invest in Korea.”
A participant in the meeting said, “Foreign experts perceive the candlelight vigils negatively and are worried about their impact on the government’s effort to attract foreign investment. It appears that foreign investment would be normalized only if the U.S. beef issue is resolved soon.”
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