SEOUL. Dec 31 Two of South Korea’s key export industries remained idle Monday as auto workers and shipbuilders sat out the fifth day of a strike their leaders promised to intensify in the coming year, reports AP.

"We're ending the first-stage fight In order to prepare for a bigger second-stage fight in the New Year." said Known Young-gil. head of an outlawed labour federation coordinating the protests.

In response to the federation's temporary relaxation of its call for a nation-wide strike, subway workers in Seoul and the southern city of Pusan and some hospital employees returned to work Monday.

But their return marked but a slight respite in organised labour's dispute with the government over a new labour law that workers fear could cost them their jobs as the nation's economy falters.

Known's group said that as of Monday, about 200.000 workers under its umbrella were taking part in the protests. The government said that if their strikes continued until the New Year, export losses would reach

Kwon said 1997 would bring strikes at banks, television and radio stations and other industries that have been untouched so far. But government officials predicted the protests would lose momentum over the upcoming New Year s holiday.

The government also went ahead and formalised the law Monday by approving it at a Cabinet session.

"The new law is based on an absolute justification that we must revive the ailing economy for the good of all — workers as well as employers." Prime Minister Lee Soo-sung said in a nationally televised address.

The protests began Thursday after ruling party legislators passed the new labour law Ln a secretive, pre-dawn parliamentary session, with no opposition members present.

Strikes by workers have since snowballed into the country's largest labour protests ever.

Idled were the country's leading automaker. Hyundai, and three others — Kia. Ssangyong and Asia. The world's largest shipyard, also operated by Hyundai, also was shut down.