Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki on March 23 attends a video conference at Government Complex-Seoul with the finance ministers and central bank governors from the G-20 group of leading economies. (Ministry of Economy and Finance)

By Xu Aiying and Kim Minji

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki on March 23 held a videoconference with finance ministers and central bank governors from member nations of the G-20 group of major economies, urging international cooperation and the easing of restrictions on human activity and material resources amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

Chaired by Saudi Arabia, the talks discussed the influence of the pandemic, each country's response to the outbreak and development of the G-20 Action Plan.

The minister stressed the sharing of each country's experience to prevent epidemics and close international cooperation, saying the daily number of confirmed cases in Korea has seen a steady decrease to under 100.

"We've implemented an integrated package program at a scale of KRW 82 trillion," he said, "We will soon announce additional packages for financial stability."

"International cooperation in macroeconomic policy, the easing of restrictions on human activity and material resources, and enforcement of a global financial safety net must be well reflected in the action plan."

He added, "We ask global organizations like the World Health Organization, the International Monetary Fund and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to analyze the bad influence of excessive restrictions on human activity and material resources, and to examine ways to cooperate internationally."