South Korea’s service industry needs to turn outward and become globalized so it can play a greater role in spurring economic growth and contribute to job creation, the country’s top economic policymaker said Thursday.

Holding talks with business leaders in the Incheon free economic zone west of Seoul, Finance Minister Choi Kyung-hwan claimed that the long-held perception of the service sector having nothing to do with trade is outdated, especially as countries around the world are reaching free trade agreements with their trading partners.

Choi, who doubles as deputy prime minister, also said the service sector is critical for creating jobs. The sector accounts for about 70 percent of the country’s GDP and employs some 60 percent of the workforce, according to the ministry.

“The services industry is firmly a part of international trade, and people need to consider foreign (service) markets as being extensions of the local market,” he emphasized.

Such views are particularly valid in the face of the growing popularity and acceptance of K-pop and other locally produced contents abroad, he said.

Choi proposed calling local services “K-services” and said a two-track approach could be followed for their expansion.

The expansion of outbound services could focus on the development of resorts, the construction of hospitals and establishment of related medical services, broadcasting, design and other forms of contents, while the inbound services are about attracting more tourists, people who need medical attention, students and aircraft maintenance, he said. The country attracted some 4,710 medical patients last year.

The policymaker emphasized that the service sector holds promise in reducing unemployment, especially among young people, whose jobless rate stood at 9 percent in 2014. This figure is much higher than the country’s overall rate of 3.5 percent. (Yonhap)