The South Korean government's budget next year is expected to top 500-trillion won, or around 418-billion U.S. dollars, a new record.<br />That's according to sources at the finance ministry.<br />They said Sunday that the government wants to use a more aggressive fiscal policy to revive the economy.<br />The figure for this year, including an extra budget, was around 398 billion dollars, so it would be an increase of at least 5 percent.<br />The announcement comes after President Moon Jae-in said last week that there needs to be a bigger role for state finance to solve structural problems in society such as unemployment and the low birth rate. <br />Meanwhile, the national debt-to GDP ratio next year is set to surpass 40 percent for the first time,... up from this year's 39-point-5 percent. <br />
