Kuala Lumpur: South Korea, China, Japan, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will convene a meeting of vice finance ministers and senior central bank officials in Kuala Lumpur this week. The discussions will focus on their multilateral currency swap agreement and explore ways to enhance financial cooperation, as stated by Seoul's finance ministry on Monday.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the ASEAN+3 Finance and Central Bank Deputies' Meeting is set for Tuesday and Wednesday in the Malaysian capital. During this meeting, senior officials will review key agenda items for the upcoming finance ministers' meeting scheduled to be held in Italy on May 4, as per the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
South Korea's delegation will be led by Deputy Finance Minister Choi Ji-young, who will serve as the chief delegate for the meeting. The agenda includes discussions on the development of the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM), a US$240 billion pool established in 2010. This pool can be utilized through currency swap deals to provide financial support during crises.
A currency swap is a mechanism designed to mitigate financial instability by allowing a country experiencing a liquidity crunch to borrow money from others using its own currency. The participants will also exchange views on the global and regional economic situation and policy responses, according to the ministry.
ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.