President Lee Jae Myung Nears Decision on New Prime Minister

President Lee Jae Myung was in the final stage of selecting a new prime minister, with presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik and two incumbent ministers currently under consideration, sources said Thursday.

Lee is highly likely to announce his nominee as soon as this week, who will replace current Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, if appointed, according to the sources.

Kim is expected to tender his resignation soon, the ruling bloc sources told Yonhap News Agency, as he may run for the leadership of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) at its convention in August or September.

Along with the presidential chief of staff, Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho and Han Seong-sook, minister of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), were currently being considered for the post of prime minister, according to the sources.

Serving as Lee's chief of staff since his inauguration a year earlier, Kang has also been working as his special envoy for strategic economic cooperation and is well acquainted with the president's diplomatic and economic policies.

Justice Minister Jung, a five-term lawmaker, has spearheaded the prosecutorial reform pursued by the Lee administration.

Should she ultimately be appointed, Han, a former chief executive of online portal giant Naver, would become the Lee government's first female prime minister and South Korea's second female prime minister since Han Myeong-sook, who served in the post from 2006-2007.