Korea Calls for Coordinated Action on Global Imbalances at G20

South Korea’s finance minister called for stronger international coordination on global economic imbalances, supply-chain risks and future sources of growth during a series of meetings with senior policymakers in Bangkok.

Finance Minister Lee Hyoung-il attended a gathering of Group of 20 finance ministers in Thailand on Thursday alongside the 2026 annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group. The appearance was Lee’s first at a major international forum since taking office last month.

Lee said G20 members should work together to manage supply-chain disruptions linked to the war in the Middle East while seeking new engines of growth as artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies reshape the global economy. He emphasized three priorities: making supply chains more resilient, protecting economically vulnerable groups and investing proactively in industries that can support future expansion.

The discussions also covered debt, financial stability and global imbalances, a term describing the persistent concentration of large current-account surpluses in some economies and deficits in others. Lee argued that addressing those gaps requires broad macroeconomic policies and structural reforms rather than isolated measures, and he emphasized cooperation both within the Group of Seven and across the wider G20.

At the invitation of the G7, Lee joined a separate meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors focused on the same imbalance issue. He also took part in talks involving G7 and African countries, where he presented investment and value creation as important foundations for sustainable development and described South Korea as a potential partner in official development assistance.

Lee held bilateral discussions with counterparts from Japan, Australia, Germany, Singapore and Britain, as well as Asian Development Bank President Masato Kanda. His meeting with Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers addressed cooperation through multilateral frameworks, drawing on the two countries’ previous work as co-chairs of a G20 study group on global imbalances.

In talks with German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil, Lee outlined South Korea’s major artificial-intelligence initiatives. The two sides also discussed cooperation in manufacturing, critical minerals, supply chains and digital technology. Lee and Kanda explored possible cooperation involving AI, critical minerals and nuclear energy, with Seoul asking the development bank to help turn those discussions into concrete projects.

Lee also asked Singapore’s second finance minister, Indranee Rajah, to share the city-state’s experience operating Temasek Holdings as South Korea prepares to establish a strategic sovereign wealth fund. The outreach comes before South Korea and Singapore are due to co-chair a finance ministers’ meeting next year involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and its three Northeast Asian partners.