BOK Senior Deputy Governor to Attend ADB Annual Meeting in Uzbekistan

SEOUL, April 30 (Yonhap) -- Ryoo Sang-dai, senior deputy governor of the Bank of Korea (BOK), will attend the annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and gatherings of ASEAN finance ministers and central bank governors in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, next week, the central bank said Thursday. Ryoo is scheduled to attend the ADB's 59th annual meeting to be held in the Uzbek city on Sunday, where participants will discuss regional economic conditions and ways to enhance financial cooperation, according to the BOK. He will also join a meeting of finance ministers and central bankers from South Korea, China and Japan set to take place Sunday on the sidelines of the ADB gathering. Ryoo will, in addition, attend a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), plus its three Northeast Asian dialogue partners -- South Korea, Japan and China -- on the same day. Top financial officials and central bankers of the ASEAN+3 nations will discuss major economic challenges and ways to strengthen cooperation, including how to enhance the role of the Chiang Mai Initiative Multilateralization (CMIM). ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam. The CMIM is a US$240 billion pool launched in 2010 that can be tapped through currency swap arrangements in times of financial crises in the region.