S. Korea's ruling party, government agree on expansionary budget for 2020 to boost economy

South Korea's ruling party and the government have pledged to draw up an expansionary budget plan for next year.In a final review this morning,... they agreed to actively use fiscal measures given the headwinds facing the country,... such as escalating trade spat with Japan,... and trade tensions between the U.S. and China."Taking an aggressive fiscal role now is more important than ever. The government will draft an expansionary budget for next year,... even if it means running a temporary fiscal deficit. We'll also take efforts to manage fiscal soundness in the mid to long run.Seoul's finance chief said last week that the budget would be worth roughly 420 billion U.S. dollars a hike of about nine percent on-year.The proposal, if approved by the National Assembly,... would raise the country's debt to GDP ratio to the upper end of 39 percent,... from the 37-point-2 percent for this year.The government says the core of the budget plan will be focused on breathing life into the economy,... boosting the people's livelihoods,... and coping with Japan's export curbs.Over 1-point-6 billion dollars will be set aside for the parts and materials sectors,... to help them develop home-grown tech and reduce their dependency on Japan.The government will finalize the budget at a cabinet meeting on Thursday and submit it to the National Assembly on September third.