juyeol lee : rebalancing an economy after the global financial crisis opening address by mr juyeol lee, governor of the bank of korea, at the bank of koreaimf regional office for asia and the pacific joint conference, seoul, 20 november 2014. * * * ladies and gentlemen, i am delighted to welcome you all to seoul, for the bank of korea - imf oap joint conference. i wish to thank director odd per brekk of the imf regional office for asia and the pacific, the conference co - organizer ; senior fellow john lipskyof johns hopkins university, our keynote speaker ; president john c. williams of the san francisco fed, and all program participants including our moderators, speakers, and discussants. the world economy is gradually recovering now, six years after the global financial crisis, but the pace of recovery remains painfully slow. it is well known that at the root of the financial crisis were the global imbalances, accumulated over a long time, and we also know that the structural imbalances, which worsened in each country during the crisis remain in place and continue to limit recovery today. history tells us that the more unbalanced an economy is, the lower its level of growth and the greater its vulnerability to negative external shocks. the correction of economic imbalances is therefore essential for preventing future crises and for achieving sustainable growth. against this backdrop, i think that this conference focused on the issue of economic rebalancing is both deeply meaningful and timely. looking back, during the so - called “ great moderation ” in the 2000s, imbalances in many aspects had been built up and spread, both externally and internally. globally, the external imbalances between countries running current account surpluses and those running current account deficits worsened. at the individual country level, various internal imbalances were also accumulating, such as financial imbalances, increased fiscal deficits, and widening gaps in output between the service and the manufacturing sectors. from the global perspective, the external imbalances seem to have narrowed somewhat recently. this is due to the sluggishness of demand in the deficit countries, rather than to any improved competitiveness in their export sectors or to expansions in domestic demand in the surplus countries. from the individual country perspective, however, internal imbalances continue to exist, and in some cases have even worsened. and when the global economy picks up, the external imbalances

. 6 / 8 above all, flexibility and expertise are needed in order to respond more preemptively and swiftly under the rapidly changing policy conditions. we should not take for granted that existing theories and practices are correct. while reinforcing expertise in individual fields, we should listen to a variety of outside opinions with an open mind. based on this, we should actively come up with realistic and suitable options for the tasks at hand. moreover, “ vision 2030, ” which is underway in commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the founding of the bank, should include strategies that can induce specific and practical changes. the next ten years will be significantly different from the past in terms of the speed and the nature of change. we need to predict future changes and give serious thought to what role the central bank should play going forward in response to this new environment. first and foremost, the organization and personnel management system and the way we work should be redesigned in accordance with the new future image of the central bank. to this end, and most importantly, all members of the bank will have to recognize that we must change and prepare for the future together. 7 / 8 my fellow members of the bank of korea, although global and domestic conditions are difficult, we still possess the potential with which we overcame even bigger crises. armed with confidence, we need to prepare for the potential risks that our economy could face going forward. i ask all of our staff to make their best efforts to fulfill their duties and responsibilities. as we greet this new year, i want to wish you all the very best of health and good fortune. thank you. january 2, 2020 governor juyeol lee 8 / 8