President Lee Myung-bak reiterated Monday that the Middle East offers a number of lucrative business and job opportunities despite the global economic downturn, and South Korea should seize them to spur its slowing economy.

After a trip to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates earlier this month, Lee has repeatedly said he saw good business opportunities in the region with large amounts of oil money.

Referring to a construction boom in the region in the 1970s, Lee has said there will be a “second Middle East boom” as countries there plan massive construction and infrastructure projects.

“The Middle East is the only region that remains immune to the current global economic crisis. Since 2000, a significant amount of global wealth has been channeled into this area thanks to oil price hikes,” Lee said during his biweekly radio address.

The sovereign wealth fund of nations in the region amounts to $1.7 trillion, accounting for more than a third of the global total, Lee said. The Middle East is unique in that the region is blessed with natural resources, financial firepower and development demand all at the same time, he said.

“Recently many countries in the region are pouring colossal sums of money into the preparations for the post-oil era and the enhancement of public welfare,” Lee said. “The combined budgets earmarked for the new national development plans by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE exceed $600 billion. ... As a result, the second Middle East boom is presenting new opportunities for Korea.”

During the oil shocks in the 1970s, many Korean workers earned dollars sweating at construction sites in the Middle East and sent them back home, making great contributions to Korea’s economic progress. From 1975 to 1983, the amount of orders received by Korean construction companies from the region reached $61.4 billion, Lee said.

Just over the past two years, however, the amount stood at a whopping $77 billion, he said.

Lee also said that Middle Eastern countries regard Korea as an optimal partner and want to forge omni-directional collaborative ties, as the Asian nation achieved industrialization and social progress in a short span of time. In addition, the hard-working Koreans in the 1970s and 80s greatly impressed them and won their trust, he said.

“Now young Koreans should be able to seize the opportunities to dash into the global arena,” Lee said. “We often talk about Africa as a viable future market. But the Middle East is an excellent market that we can enter now. The four countries I have just visited are excellent examples.” 

(Yonhap News)