Lee Eog-weon, chairman of Korea’s Financial Services Commission, met with Colin Crooks, British ambassador to Korea, on Monday to exchange views on the global economic outlook for next year, financial policy directions and ways to expand bilateral cooperation, the commission said. The meeting took place at Government Complex Seoul, days after Korea and the U.K. concluded negotiations to upgrade their bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) following more than two years of talks. The revised Korea-U.K. FTA was finalized on Dec. 15. Lee said the Korean government is taking preemptive steps to respond to growing global volatility by closely monitoring both domestic and external economic conditions. He emphasized that authorities are prepared to stabilize financial markets through market support programs totaling more than 100 trillion won ($67.5 billion), with additional measures available if conditions deteriorate. He also outlined the government’s broader financial policy direction, noting that Seoul this year laid the foundation for what it calls a “major financial transformation.”