South Korean unions warned of job cuts

The South Korean president-elect, Kim Dae-jung, has told leaders of a militant union federation that lay-offs were inevitable under the International Monetary Fund's prescription for the country's ailing economy.

Speaking at a meeting with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, he said the reality facing the South Korean economy was that it needed the co-operation of the I-M-F and must hurry the reforms requested by them.

Union activists later gathered at a park in Seoul for a protest demonstration.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service