Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan said Friday that the government would focus on structural reforms in key economic sectors next year to improve the fundamentals of the South Korean economy and revive the nation’s growth potential.

“The government will increase the efficiency of the public sector and boost the dynamics of the financial industry, to help create a virtuous circle between the financial sector and the real economy,” Choi said in a government meeting in Seoul.

He said that he would push for economic restructuring in earnest next year to improve the fundamentals of the economy and sharpen competitiveness.

“To support the reform, the government will make efforts to stimulate domestic consumption and investments and also do its best to manage risks like mounting household debts and waning competitiveness in the key industries,” Choi said.

“I know there is a tough road in undergoing restructuring, but we have to go down it,” he said. “We don’t have much time to repeat the past ways.” (Yonhap)