SEOUL, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's top economic policymaker said Friday that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s participation in the 23rd Winter Olympics will have an economic effect as it eases geopolitical risks on the Korean Peninsula.

Finance Minister Kim Dong-yeon, who also serves as deputy prime minister for economic affairs, told a parliamentary finance committee meeting that the economic effect from the DPRK's participation in the Winter Olympics will be significant.

Kim said the peace atmosphere, created by the DPRK's participation, will have a stabilizing effect on the economy of South Korea and will raise the global creditworthiness toward the economy.

The DPRK sent its athletes and cheerleaders to the South Korea-hosted winter sports event set to kick off on Friday night at the eastern county of PyeongChang.

The athletes from the two Koreas will march together at the opening ceremony under a unified Korean flag. South Korea and the DPRK fielded a joint women's ice hockey team, the first unified inter-Korean Olympic team.

The Bank of Korea (BOK), South Korea's central bank, estimated that tourism revenue, caused by the Winter Olympics, would raise the country's private consumption by 0.1 percentage point in the January-March quarter.

The BOK said improved inter-Korean relations will lead to the eased geopolitical risks on the peninsula, which would serve as a upside factor for the South Korean economy.