South Korea to lower economic growth rate

South Korea's government is likely to lower this year's economic growth rate to the mid 3% range.
A senior government official said Thursday that marking down the growth rate has become inevitable in the wake of the Sewol ferry sinking and the weakened signs of economic recovery, according to Korea's (KBS WORLD) website.
He also attributed the global economy's worsened conditions.
Earlier on Tuesday during his confirmation hearing, nominee for finance minister, Choi Kyung-hwan, said more than a supplementary budget is necessary when considering current economic conditions.
Also on Tuesday, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance released a report on economic trends using the term "sluggish" instead of "smooth" to describe the economic recovery for the first time in a year.
With Choi's remark and the ministry's report, market observers project the government will lower the nation's economic growth rate from 4.1% to a rate between 3.5% and 3.7%.
The government is also said to be actively seeking to strengthen expansive fiscal policies as a way to revitalize the economy without a supplementary budget. Such efforts could cause the government's deficit volume to top 17 trillion won next year.