Good morning, fellow Koreans,

The Chuseok holidays have just begun.

Many of you may have already arrived in your hometowns, and many others of you may be listening in your cars.

The three consecutive typhoons that lashed Korea this year caused our farmers and fishermen great difficulties.

Especially, fish farms and fruit orchards sustained enormous damage.

It is truly regrettable that, after having worked so hard, they suffered such huge losses right before the harvest season.

Many citizens, however, have willingly purchased fallen fruit, and their support must have brought great comfort to many of you. I am also grateful to all the people who have battled difficulties engaging in recovery efforts.

The Government has tried its utmost to complete restoration work and dole out compensation before Chuseok so that all of you could enjoy the holidays, but to my frustration, some work still remains to be done. The Government will hurry and finish the necessary work as quickly as possible.

Fellow citizens,

This year, the global economy as a whole is suffering difficulties, and we cannot be an exception.

As Chuseok comes around this year at a time when the going is tough, my mind is not that bright.

Fortunately, many large businesses took the initiative in purchasing great numbers of traditional market gift certificates as part of efforts to revive the markets in the run-up to the holidays this year.

The total sales this year soared to 40 billion won, about twice more than last year.

It was such a great relief to hear from the merchants that the gift certificates are of significant help in revitalizing traditional markets. My appreciation has to go to many business people who showed great enthusiasm.

During the Chuseok holidays, many people cannot visit their hometowns since they have to continue working. There are also some people who cannot visit as they have not yet found proper jobs.

This fall, I hope an increasing number of young people will be able to find decent jobs. I urge them not to yield to despair and keep taking on challenges.

One silver lining is that the employment rate of graduates of Meister and specialized high schools is on the rise.

Public awareness of the employment of high school graduates is also improving, which gives us great relief.

I would like to take this opportunity to console and encourage all those who find it difficult to go home for one reason or another. 

There are some people I would like to offer special thanks to during the holidays.

They are the police officers and firefighters who are on alert day and night for the safety of citizens. I am grateful to the members of the Korean Armed Forces who are guarding the frontline or engaged in peacekeeping in foreign lands. I hope they will exchange greetings with their families back home without fail at least by telephone.

This year, all the countries of the world have been going through hardships. Fortunately, Korea recently received a piece of good news that international credit rating companies had raised its sovereign ratings. It is truly astounding that Korea has been given a higher evaluation than Japan. This is the result of the combined endeavors of all Koreans.

Even though we are experiencing difficulties, the Republicof Korea is striving hard to recover faster than other countries.

Just as the country made the fastest turnaround in the 2008 global crisis on the strength of national unity, I firmly believe that we can repeat the feat this time as well.

I have full confidence in the potential of the Korean people.

According to the weather forecast, we might not be able to see the moon. But I am still hoping to see the bright full moon. And it is my earnest wish for every one of you to be better off next year.

Fellow citizens, I hope you have wonderful visits to your hometowns. After refreshing your body and mind during Chuseok, let us all make a new, lively start.

Thank you very much.