President Yoon Suk-yeol said Friday that the government's plan to cut the corporate tax will help companies raise their competitiveness.

Yoon made the remarks as he arrived for work, a day after the finance ministry proposed lowering the maximum corporate tax rate to 22 percent, the average rate in countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), from 25 percent.

If the government lowers the corporate tax rate to the average of the OECD nations, it would "help companies become more competitive and produce various added values," Yoon said.

Yoon has pledged to support economic growth led by the private sector.

If the government allows companies to "properly" carry out their business activities, it will eventually lead to economic growth and boost the livelihoods of middle-class and low-income people, Yoon said. (Yonhap)