The first gathering of the emergency economic council will take place at Cheong Wa Dae on the early morning of Thursday (Jan. 8), the Presidential Office said on Tuesday.

The council was organized as a follow up to President Lee Myung-bak''s New Year address to the nation on Jan. 2, in which he said the economy will be run in emergency mode in 2009.

Kim Eun-hye, vice presidential spokesperson, said in a briefing that the emergency council will convene on a particular weekday starting from Jan. 8.

President Lee Myung-bak will chair the weekly meeting, attended by the Minister of Finance and Economy, Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, Governor of the Bank of Korea, Special Adviser to the President for Economy, Senior Secretary to the President for Economy, Senior Secretary to the President for State Affairs Planning and two to three members of the National Economic Advisory Council.

A subterranean economic "situation room" was also set up at the Presidential Office on Tuesday. Four teams in charge of macro economy, real economy, finance and welfare will operate in the room and each team will comprise a maximum of five officials from 11 ministries, the vice spokesperson said.

The ministries are in the middle of drawing up an emergency economic strategy plan and laying down key performance indicators, Kim said.