海角大神

Two broad topics tend to dominate the news in this capital city of almost 10 million people. One involves the ongoing diplomatic talks between South Korea and North Korea and related coverage of the potential for another U.S.-North Korea summit. The other concerns President Moon Jae-in鈥檚 efforts to invigorate the South Korean economy.

For Ye-jin Choi, a second-year chemistry and nanoscience student at Ewha Womans University, the reports about North Korea and its leader, Kim Jong Un, amount to background noise. She wants Mr. Moon to spend less time courting his counterpart to the north and more time striving to create jobs for her generation.

鈥淭he president and his administration need to take one step away from foreign affairs and focus a little more on the country鈥檚 economy,鈥� Ms. Choi says. An unemployment rate of nearly 11% for South Koreans ages 15 to 29 鈥� more than twice the overall rate 鈥� has her worried about the job market she will enter after graduating in 2021.

鈥淢y first priority will be trying to work here,鈥� she says. 鈥淏ut if after a year or so I鈥檓 still unemployed due to serious economic issues, I believe there would be better opportunities for me outside Korea.鈥�

Her perspective reflects a gathering frustration with Mr. Moon among young South Koreans as Asia鈥檚 fourth-largest economy sputters. Sluggish job growth and a decline in exports of semiconductors and other Korean goods 鈥� a casualty of trade tensions between the United States and China 鈥� has intensified pressure on Mr. Moon to deliver on his economic agenda.

Mr. Moon pledged to enact reforms and redress income inequality when he won an election two years ago after the ouster of then-President Park Geun-hye amid a corporate corruption scandal. He called for improved wages and working conditions and a reduced reliance on Samsung, Hyundai, and other conglomerates known as chaebols to propel growth.

Since taking office, he has sought to spur hiring and production at small and midsize companies by offering tax subsidies, raised South Korea鈥檚 minimum wage by more than 25%, and cut the maximum working week from 68 to 52 hours.

The moves have failed to avert mounting job losses in manufacturing, construction, retail, and other sectors. The country of 51 million people added less than 100,000 new jobs last year, and the increased minimum wage has caused some small companies to freeze hiring for low-level and part-time positions. Others have closed.

The career forecast appears darkest for young adults in a country where more than three-quarters of high school graduates enroll in college. A recent survey by a South Korean recruiting firm found that only 1 in 10 graduating university students had lined up a full-time job, stoking concerns among public officials of a nationwide brain drain.

鈥淲e have a huge number of educated youth,鈥� says Jae-soo Yoo, vice mayor of economic affairs in Busan, the country鈥檚 second-largest city. 鈥淚f they can鈥檛 find work here, they will take their dreams abroad.鈥�

Nuclear diplomacy

Mr. Moon will meet with President Donald Trump in Seoul this weekend after the U.S. leader departs the G-20 summit in Japan. The two leaders plan to discuss possibilities for reviving negotiations with Mr. Kim about ending North Korea鈥檚 nuclear weapons program.

The talks stalled after Mr. Kim and Mr. Trump held a second summit in Vietnam in February, following their initial meeting last year. Shin Beomchul, a senior fellow at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies in Seoul, argues that Mr. Moon has devoted his attention to nuclear diplomacy at the economy鈥檚 expense.

鈥淭his government focuses too much on North Korea. The focus should be on this country鈥檚 economic relationship with the U.S. and Japan,鈥� he says, referring to two of South Korea鈥檚 biggest trading partners.

Yet the fate of Mr. Moon鈥檚 economic strategy might depend on his ability to coax Mr. Kim and Mr. Trump toward a diplomatic resolution. A nuclear deal could fortify inter-Korean ties and, over time, boost bilateral trade and economic development.

Supporters of Mr. Moon, who replaced two of his top economic aides last week, assert that he could quiet his critics by emphasizing the link between his diplomatic and economic policies.

鈥淗aving better relations between South and North Korea would have significant impact on the economy and create jobs,鈥� says Spencer Kim, co-founder of the Pacific Century Institute, a nonprofit policy and research firm that works with countries throughout Asia. 鈥淣ow, is the Moon administration doing a good job of explaining that? No.鈥�

A mile from the Blue House, the president鈥檚 official residence in Seoul, Hyun-woo Park works in a gift shop in the cultural district of Insadong. After earning a degree in mechanical engineering last year, he sent out more than 50 applications to companies in the capital and other cities. A handful of interviews yielded little more than disappointment.

鈥淚 think trying to have peace with North Korea is the right thing,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut I didn鈥檛 go to university because I want to be a cashier.鈥�

A public relations loser聽

Mr. Moon鈥檚 approval rating has fallen from a high of 83% soon after the first summit between Mr. Kim and Mr. Trump to below 50%.聽Much of the public discontent arises from an economy expanding at its slowest pace since 2012. Chung-in Moon, a special adviser to the president, disputes the portrayal of Mr. Moon as preoccupied with North Korea but concedes a political reality.

鈥淭alking about denuclearization is a public relations gain in South Korea,鈥� he says. 鈥淭alking about the economy is a public relations loser.鈥�

In 2013, South Korea launched an overseas jobs program that has helped almost 16,800 adults under age 29 find work in Japan, the U.S., and dozens of other countries. Officials cast the initiative as a short-term antidote to unemployment that enables recent graduates to gain experience that they can parlay into a job back home in a year or two.

But the program鈥檚 rising popularity as the economy stagnates 鈥� the number of workers placed abroad has more than tripled since 2013 鈥� suggests that holding a job outside South Korea could turn into a long-range solution for a generation of educated workers.

鈥淲e have a lot of unemployed young people in Busan,鈥� says Mr. Yoo, the vice mayor. The city鈥檚 20 universities attract students from across the country, and after graduation many return home, work unskilled jobs, or head abroad, unable to find a foothold in their preferred fields in South Korea. 鈥淲e are no exception to what鈥檚 happening across the country.鈥�

Busan operates the world鈥檚 fifth-busiest shipping container port. Last year, Mr. Moon announced a plan to spend the equivalent of $3.7 billion to create 50,000 jobs for young adults and for laid-off workers in Busan and elsewhere in the country鈥檚 southern region, where a yearslong decline in trade has hurt the shipbuilding and auto industries.

Mr. Yoo, who supports the president鈥檚 overtures to North Korea, speculates that improved relations could lift Busan鈥檚 economy through an increase in manufacturing and shipping traffic to and from the north, widening the job market for young workers. 鈥淏ut right now,鈥� he says, 鈥渨e don鈥檛 know when that will happen.鈥�

Testing support in legislative election聽

Voters will offer judgment on Mr. Moon鈥檚 policies next April, when his liberal coalition will try to retain power in the National Assembly. Given the president鈥檚 sagging approval ratings, analysts predict that a shift in the legislative balance would end his chances of reviving and expanding trade with North Korea.

鈥淚f there鈥檚 not a [trade] deal soon, the door will completely close by early next year,鈥� says Jeonghun Min, a professor of American studies at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy in Seoul.

The exasperation of young adults over the economy serves as a kind of backhanded compliment to Mr. Moon, who has handled the North Korean crisis deftly enough to allow them to fret about their careers instead of war.

Ms. Choi, the second-year university student, credits him for raising the minimum wage despite its adverse effect on some businesses and his plan to subsidize hiring of young workers. At the same time, she takes the measure of the country鈥檚 job market 鈥� and her future 鈥� without illusion.

鈥淚f the economy is still very unstable by the time I finish my education,鈥� she says, 鈥淚 am definitely considering moving out.鈥�

Reporting for this story was made possible by a travel fellowship provided through the East-West Center.