As Israel launched a preemptive attack on Iran on the 12th, escalating instability in the Middle East, the government activated a joint emergency response team consisting of organizations related to the Middle East crisis and decided to monitor the situation in the Middle East and financial and real economy trends 24 hours a day.
Lee Hyung-il, acting Minister of Economy and Finance, held an emergency situation inspection meeting with related organizations regarding the Middle East crisis at the Government Seoul Building on the 13th and made this decision.
The joint emergency response team is led by acting Lee Hyung-il and operates through the international energy team, real economy team, and financial market team, with broad participation from relevant ministries, public institutions, and related industries centered on the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and the Financial Services Commission. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is in charge of trend monitoring.
The government plans to closely examine the impact on the real economy, including energy and exports. If the market shows excessive volatility diverging from our economy's fundamentals, it plans to take immediate and bold actions in close cooperation among related organizations according to the contingency plan.
The Vice Minister noted, "Given the very high uncertainty regarding how the situation will unfold in the future, and the possibility that military tensions in the Middle East could escalate, please strengthen the monitoring and response to real and market trends while keeping all possibilities open," urging thorough management.
As the Middle East is a region where Korea has a high energy dependence, the government believes there is a possibility of intensified volatility in international energy prices. As of noon on the same day, the international crude oil price has risen approximately 10.7% compared to the previous transaction day, reaching $76.8 per barrel (based on Brent crude).
However, there are currently no disruptions in domestic crude oil and LNG imports, and oil tankers and liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers sailing or loading near the Middle East are all operating normally.
Yoon Chang-hyun, director of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's Resource Industry Policy Bureau, said, "Depending on the future development of the situation, there may be significant impacts on domestic crude oil and LNG imports," adding, "We have checked the status of domestic oil and gas reserves together with the Korea National Oil Corporation and Korea Gas Corporation, and the government, industry, and organizations will respond swiftly as one team."