South Korea's top economic policymaker on Tuesday reiterated his opposition to the idea of providing universal COVID-19 relief handouts to all people with another extra budget currently under review at parliament.

On Monday, the heads of the ruling and main opposition parties shared the view about the need to provide cash handouts to all people with this year's second extra budget.

In late June, the government proposed an extra budget of 33 trillion won ($28.9 billion) to finance the fifth round of COVID-19 aid packages for people in the bottom 80 percent income bracket and small merchants hit hard by the pandemic.

"I don't agree (with the political chiefs' idea)," Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki told a parliamentary meeting.  

Hong has been long opposed to providing universal support to all people, citing the country's growing national debt.

He also remains cautious about jacking up the size of the proposed supplementary budget, presenting negative views about the possibility of a debt sale to fund a larger extra budget.

The ruling Democratic Party (DP) wants to offer another round of universal stimulus checks for all households. In May 2020, the government doled out 14.3 trillion won in emergency cash handouts to all households.

The fourth wave of the pandemic is expected to incur huge losses for small merchants as the country on Monday began implementing the Level 4 social distancing rules, the highest level in its four tier scheme, in the greater capital area for two weeks. (Yonhap)