S.Korean president demands job creation efforts

SEOUL, Jan 15 - South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Thursday demanded the government promptly draw up measures to create more jobs, a day after weak employment data underscored the growing risk of a recession.

"The most urgent task facing us is providing jobs to the people," an official at the presidential Blue House quoted Lee as saying during a second economic crisis meeting.

"It is important (for the government) to improve employment quality for day workers and provide more jobs by executing budget spending as early as possible," Lee said.

Last week Lee launched the weekly economic crisis meeting with top economic planners, including the Finance Minister and the Bank of Korea Governor, to steer the country's struggle to avert an economic crisis.

Government data showed on Wednesday South Korea suffered its first net job loss in more than five years in December over a year earlier, adding to signs Asia's fourth-largest economy was closing in on its first recession in a decade.