The South Korean government said on Tuesday that it has spent 110.7 trillion won (US$89 billion) of this year's budget as of late April on stabilizing the domestic economy.

The money spent during the four months reached 43 percent of the budget worth 257.7 trillion won (US$207.4 billion), from which the government can tap for various projects, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.

This year's total budget stands at 284 trillion won (US$228.6 billion), including public funds and money set aside for state-run corporations.

"The overall amount released so far exceeds the original spending schedule by 11.5 percent, as the government has moved to front-load spending to pull up the sluggish economy," an official at the ministry said.

The finance ministry is expected to spend additional 17.2 trillion won (US$13.8 billion) in extra budget within the year, the official added.

(Xinhua News Agency May 12, 2009)