(LEAD) president-economy

(ATTN: UPDATES with more remarks in last 3 paras; REPLACES photo)

SEOUL, Nov. 5 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung on Thursday instructed officials to help build an economic virtuous cycle in which South Korea's recent export growth can translate into a recovery in domestic demand, leading to the development of both large conglomerates and smaller firms.

Lee issued the instruction at a meeting with his key aides amid strong economic indicators driven by brisk exports.

His remarks came shortly after the Bank of Korea reported that the country posted an all-time high current account surplus of over US$60 billion in September, buoyed by strong semiconductor exports. Earlier data also showed that South Korea's exports jumped 93.7 percent from a year earlier to $115.3 billion in October, the second-highest monthly figure in the country's history following the $121.1 billion posted just a month before.

"In order for the South Korean economy to go beyond quantitative expansion into a qualitative leap forward, we need a major change in the manner of growth," the president said.

"We need to build a national economic virtuous cycle in which export increases can lead to a recovery in domestic demand, and the growth in certain industries and conglomerates can spread to small and medium-sized firms and small merchants," he noted.

The president highlighted the need to nurture new growth engines to facilitate stronger and more sustainable economic development.

As part of such efforts, he said the government should build a system in which those with ideas and skills could easily try to start new businesses, calling for financial and administrative support for promising startups to make inroads into the global market.

The president also instructed officials to devise measures to prevent cheating using high-tech gadgets during the nationwide college entrance exam scheduled for Nov. 19.

His remarks came as the illegal use of smart glasses equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) emerged as a challenge for major exams, after at least two applicants using such devices were caught cheating during university entrance exams earlier this year.

"Special efforts should be made to prevent cheating using high-tech devices," the president said, urging officials to come up with comprehensive measures to address the issue.

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