South Korea kicked off annual consultation meetings with global rating appraiser Standard & Poor's Global Ratings (S&P) on Monday to discuss the country's credit valuation and economic outlook, the finance ministry said.

The delegation, led by Kim Eng Tan, senior director of Asia-Pacific sovereign ratings at S&P, visited South Korea for four days of consultations through Thursday, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. It will be the first face-to-face meetings between the two sides since the COVID-19 outbreak began.

The delegation met with officials from a major state-run think tank -- the Korea Development Institute -- on Monday before holding consultations with ministry officials to discuss the current status and outlook of the South Korean economy and the country's policy responses.

The delegation is set to pay a courtesy call on Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki on Tuesday and will hold two separate meetings with the Financial Service Commission and the Bank of Korea on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively, according to the ministry.

The rating agency is expected to announce South Korea's credit rating next year based on the consultation results, according to officials.

In April, S&P maintained its credit rating on South Korea at "AA," with a stable outlook, the third-highest level on the company's table. The country has been at the level since August 2016, when the agency upgraded it from "AA-."

In July, it forecast the South Korean economy to expand 4 percent this year amid robust exports, revising up its previous outlook of 3.6 percent growth made in April. (Yonhap)