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5 clusters · 10 sources · 35 days · First seen · Last updated

Ulsan municipal initiatives and fiscal challenges

Overview

Ulsan Metropolitan City is implementing various administrative, economic, and fiscal initiatives. To generate non-tax revenue, the city is recruiting bidders for its ‘2026 Bus Stop Name Co-branding Paid Sale Project’ from September 14 to 16. This program targets 129 bus stops in commercial areas, such as Hakseong-ro and Samsan-ro, allowing companies to display names on signage and announcements for three years. Since 2021, this award-winning initiative has generated 615 million won.

To stimulate long-term economic development, the city has established the 50 billion won ‘Ulsan Future Growth Fund’. Utilizing 35 billion won from the government’s fund-of-funds as seed money, the fund includes contributions from HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, NH Nonghyup Bank, BNK Kyongnam Bank, UNIST, and Korea Zinc. It aims to support sectors including shipbuilding, automobiles, secondary batteries, and energy, with plans to establish sub-funds exceeding 63 billion won.

Despite these growth efforts, the city faces significant fiscal pressure. A reported revenue shortage of 423.9 billion KRW across the Jung-gu, Nam-gu, Dong-gu, and Buk-gu districts has prompted local council member Lee Jang-geol to advocate for increasing the adjustment grant rate from 20% to at least 23%. Additionally, the city is pursuing a phased expansion of financial support for the bus industry to address deficits and resolve approximately 81.3 billion KRW in unpaid severance pay.

Following the approval of the third supplementary budget for 2026, the city’s total budget has exceeded 6 trillion won, reaching 6,114.8 billion won. The approval process involved political tension between Mayor Kim Sang-wook and the City Council. While some funds were partially restored, the council implemented cuts to projects such as the ‘120 Ulsan Civil Service Center’ and the ‘Seoul Office’, as well as 850 million won for the Samho Elementary School school zone undergrounding project and 1.2 billion won for raw water purchase costs.

Entities

Ulsan Metropolitan City · Ulsan Metropolitan City · Kim Sang-wook · HD Hyundai Heavy Industries · Ulsan Metropolitan Office of Education

Timeline

  1. [POLITICS] 2 sources
    Ulsan Metropolitan City budget exceeds 6 trillion won after council approval

    The Ulsan Metropolitan Council finalized a 6.1 trillion won supplementary budget, resolving political disputes by partially restoring previously cut funds for civil service and regional projects.

  2. [BUSINESS] 2 sources
    Ulsan establishes 50 billion won Future Growth Fund

    Ulsan Metropolitan City has launched a 50 billion won ‘Future Growth Fund’ to support startups and major local industries, including shipbuilding, automobiles, and secondary batteries.

  3. [POLITICS] 4 sources
    Ulsan addresses municipal budget shortages and industry support

    Ulsan officials and council members are addressing regional fiscal shortages, with calls to increase municipal grant rates to support autonomous districts and new plans to stabilize the city bus industry.

  4. [BUSINESS] 3 sources
    Ulsan to sell naming rights for 129 bus stops

    Ulsan Metropolitan City is seeking bidders for naming rights at 129 bus stops for 2026, offering companies three-year advertising rights to generate revenue for facility improvements.

  5. [BUSINESS] 3 sources
    Ulsan announces traffic safety projects and SME support initiatives

    Ulsan Metropolitan City is launching a 1 billion won traffic safety improvement project and a support program for SMEs to foster job creation and better working environments.

Sources

biz.heraldcorp.com · bjynews.com · d-cuba.com · localsegye.co.kr · news.heraldcorp.com · newstomato.com · seoul.co.kr · sisajournal.com · ulsanpress.net · zdnet.co.kr

This summary has been updated 3 times: see revision history