President Lee Jae Myung speaks during an emergency economy response meeting on Middle East tensions, at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Monday. (Yonhap)


President Lee Jae Myung ordered "extraordinary measures" to shore up energy supplies and rein in surging oil prices, including the swift imposition of a petroleu 릴게임야마토 m price cap for the first time in nearly 30 years.
Lee convened an emergency economic response meeting at Cheong Wa Dae at 11 a.m. to assess the economic and inflationary fallout from the wi 사아다쿨 dening war in the Middle East, sparked by US-Israeli strikes on Iran that began Feb. 28.
"As the crisis in the Middle East deepens, uncertainty at home and abroad is growing significantly," 오션파라다이스다운로드 Lee said during the meeting, attended by Cabinet members and senior secretaries. "In particular, it is becoming a considerable burden on our economy, which is highly dependent on global trade and ener 릴게임모바일 gy imports from the Middle East."
Lee underscored, "The government must prepare preemptive response measures with extraordinary resolve, keeping even the worst-case scenario in mind, given t 바다이야기 he difficulty of predicting how the situation will unfold."
The meeting took place hours after global oil prices surpassed $100 a barrel on Sunday evening on the US east coast, for the first time since July 2022. The global oil benchmark of Brent crude oil then promptly topped the $110 threshold.
During the meeting, Lee underlined the salience of devising measures to fend off energy shocks.
"As the situation of energy supply and price instability is serious, corresponding extraordinary measures are also necessary," Lee said. "We should swiftly identify alternative supply routes that do not pass through the Strait of Hormuz in cooperation with strategic partner countries."
South Korea imports about 94 percent of its energy, with roughly 70 percent of its crude oil imports passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping lane effectively blocked by Iran.
Lee also reiterated, "Illegal acts such as collusion among refiners and gas stations, hoarding and stockpiling will be strictly cracked down on."
"If violations occur, it is necessary to impose strict sanctions equivalent to several times the profits that may arise from them."
Lee again called for introducing a fuel price ceiling to curb excessive increases in petroleum products ? particularly gasoline and diesel sold at gas stations ? an issue he first raised during Thursday's extraordinary Cabinet meeting.
"For petroleum products whose prices have recently risen excessively, we must swiftly introduce a maximum price system and implement it boldly," Lee said. "Given that the burden of rising energy prices on consumer prices falls first, and most heavily, on ordinary people, we must prepare careful and effective measures."
If the measure is formally adopted, it would mark the return of a government-imposed petroleum price ceiling for the first time since South Korea liberalized petroleum prices in 1997. The legal basis is Article 23 of the Petroleum and Alternative Fuel Business Act, enacted in 1970, which was invoked during the oil shocks of the 1970s and the Gulf War in the early 1990s.
As intensifying conflicts in the Middle East rattled South Korean markets, Lee called for "active measures to respond to the growing volatility in the financial and foreign exchange markets, which are the lifeblood of our economy."
"We must move beyond past approaches, identify hidden risks and carefully prepare response measures," Lee said.
The emergency meeting came shortly after a 20-minute circuit breaker was triggered on the Kospi, while a sell-side sidecar was also activated on the tech-heavy Kosdaq on Monday morning, amid a sharp market plunge.
The won-dollar exchange rate, which surged as high as 1,505.8 won in overnight trading on March 3 ? the first time it had breached 1,500 won since March 2009 during the global financial crisis ? approached the 1,500 won threshold again Monday.
Lee underlined that South Korean authorities "should actively expand the existing 100 trillion won ($67 billion) market stabilization program if necessary and proactively prepare additional measures at both the government and central bank levels."
"In particular, we must deal firmly with those seeking to exploit the difficult market environment for unfair gains, and use this situation as an opportunity to swiftly push forward reform measures aimed at strengthening the foundations of our capital markets," Lee said.
Lee also called on government authorities to "do their utmost to minimize the temporary hardships faced by the public."
"I ask that you prepare thoroughly and meticulously using all available means. If the current crisis in the Middle East becomes prolonged, its impact on the real economy could be significant."