South Korea premier sees 70% first-shot Covid-19 vaccination by end-September

SEOUL (BLOOMBERG) - South Korea wants to have 70 per cent of its population vaccinated by the end of September, the premier said, speeding up one of the lowest inoculation rates among major Asian economies as cases surge to record highs.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, at the forefront of the government's pandemic policy, said on Tuesday (Aug 17) that South Korea would keep funnelling aid to small businesses hurt by strict social distancing measures aimed at stemming a record Covid-19 wave powered by the Delta variant.

Mr Kim indicated that Seoul would do all it can to avoid a lockdown.

"We're looking at various ways, such as cross-inoculation with other companies, in order to reach a 70 per cent first-shot vaccination rate by the end of September," he said in an interview with Bloomberg, referring to the mix of Covid-19 vaccines from suppliers including Moderna and Pfizer.

"If we were to be ambitious, we could reach a 70 per cent rate for second shots by the end of October or at least mid-November," said Mr Kim, who took office earlier this year and is a key player in virus policy for President Moon Jae-in until his single, five-year term ends in about nine months.

Daily new virus cases started to surge last month with the emergence of the Delta variant, while the vaccine roll-out was slowed by supply shortages and shipment delays.

Inoculations have sped up in recent weeks with about 20 per cent of the population fully vaccinated, up from 15 per cent last week. Previously, it took six weeks to rise from 10 per cent to 15 per cent.

But South Korea lags Japan, which started its inoculations at about the same time and now has 37 per cent of its population fully vaccinated. Singapore leads Asia with 73 per cent fully vaccinated, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

South Korea's once-lauded virus containment strategy, which operated without a lockdown, is facing a major challenge as the number of daily new coronavirus cases has touched records in recent days. Mr Kim indicated the country could weather the current storm without turning to lockdowns.

"One of the reasons why we think Korea has succeeded in prevention is because we didn't turn to extreme measures like lockdowns," he said, adding the approach has prevented economic damage.

South Korea will also be looking to support its powerful semiconductor industry to help its economy as the pandemic wanes, Mr Kim said. Aid would be extended to other areas of the economy and up to about US$17,000 (S$23,000) would be provided to small business owners, starting from Tuesday, he added.

South Korea is willing to stand by its United States ally even when it pursues supply chains for components that do not involve China, Mr Kim said.

"It's impossible for a single country to monopolise the industry, and thus we are happy to participate in the US-led global supply chain that excludes China, as a partner."

Mr Kim, 63, took part in rallies in the 1980s to bring down authoritarian rule. He was initially a conservative but later jumped to the progressive camp and is now seen as a moderate. He has not tossed his hat into the ring for the 2022 presidential race and, when asked if he might consider a 2027 run, said: "Maybe I'm too old at that time."

In the interview, Mr Kim extended an olive branch to North Korea and Japan, and spoke more about the country's chip industry.

On North Korea, he said: "I hope that the North Korean leadership makes the right decision to have dialogue when the leaders of South Korea and the US say we could use both diplomatic and engagement methods to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue."

On Japan, he said: "Korea and Japan are countries in North-east Asia that share the values of human rights, democracy and a market economy. We should overcome the obstacles and should talk for the future. I hope we could have that after the election in Japan."

On China, he said: "I can tell you clearly that the ROK-US alliance is the most crucial foundation of our foreign strategy and security. However, China is our close neighbour that shares a maritime border with us and is our biggest trading partner. Therefore, we must pursue a pragmatic relation with Beijing."

Referring to South Korea by its formal name, the Republic of Korea (ROK), he added: "Having said that, we have no intention of making advances that risk our fundamental framework of the ROK-US alliance."

On semiconductors, he said: "The semiconductor industry has a strategic importance in our economy, thus it would be natural for us to support industry players such as Samsung and SK Hynix, which have market dominance in the semiconductor field."