Gist of proposed extra budget designed to support pandemic-hit merchants

SEOUL, May 12 (Yonhap) -- The following is the gist of the 59.4 trillion won (US$46.1 billion) extra budget that the new government of President Yoon Suk-yeol proposed Thursday to compensate pandemic-hit small merchants' losses and help stabilize inflation.

▲ The extra budget consists of 36.4 trillion won catered for spending plans and 23 trillion won in grants to regional governments

▲ 36.4 trillion won earmarked for spending plans
1) 26.3 trillion won for pandemic-hit merchants
-- 23 trillion won will be spent to provide at least 6 million won each to 3.7 million small merchants to compensate their losses.
-- 1.5 trillion won will be used to improve compensation program for small merchants
-- 1.7 trillion won will be spent to offer financial support
-- 100 billion won will be set aside to help revitalize merchants

2) 6.1 trillion won for antivirus efforts
-- 3.5 trillion won will be used to support COVID-19 tests, hospitalization
-- 2.6 trillion won will be spent to provide COVID-19 treatments and shore up other virus-related medical needs

3) 3.1 trillion won for efforts to tame inflation
-- 1.7 trillion won will be set aside to help stabilize vulnerable people's livelihoods
-- 1.1 trillion won will be spent to support special-type workers, taxi drivers and artists to ensure their job security
-- 300 billion won will be used to ease inflationary pressure
-- 100 billion won will be spent to cope with fallout of forest fire

4) 1 trillion won for reserve funds
-- to shore up reserve funds

▲ 23 trillion won in grants to regional governments
-- Under law, the central government is obliged to provide around 40 percent of excess tax revenue to regional governments to help them bolster their finance status

▲ Without debt sale, the government plans to finance the planned extra budget by tapping excess tax revenue and available funds, and cutting non-essential expenditures
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