Seoul: The government will work to expand employment services to help young adults find jobs, the acting president said Wednesday, amid tough job market conditions for young adults. Acting President Choi Sang-mok made the remarks in an opening speech for the 2025 Korea Job Fair, which kicked off in Seoul for a two-day run through Thursday, according to the finance ministry.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Acting President Choi emphasized the importance of creating a sustainable future for South Korea by fostering a virtuous cycle where the challenges and passion of young adults drive innovation and growth for companies. In turn, these companies would provide more opportunities for young workers. He highlighted that corporate innovation based on excellent talent has been the driving force of South Korea's economic growth, despite the country's lack of natural resources.

Statistics Korea data indicates that the number of young South Koreans aged 15 to 29 who were jobless or chose to remain economically inactive surpassed 1.2 million last month, an increase of 70,000 from last year's 1.13 million. To address this issue, the government plans to support local companies' employment programs for young workers.

The finance ministry announced the establishment of hotlines with six major economic and business organizations to discuss challenges in creating new jobs. The ministry stated, "We will operate the hotlines to help companies create even just one more quality job, as their creation of quality jobs is the key to resolving the employment problem for young workers."