[News Today] MEASURES TO TAME CHUSEOK PRICES

[LEAD]
As Chuseok, Korea's Thanksgiving, is coming, the government will release a record amount of holiday goods to the market. It's in response to soaring consumer prices triggered by a prolonged heatwave. It also rolled out measures to support the struggling rice and hanwoo beef sectors. We bring you the latest on these government initiatives.

[REPORT]
The prolonged heatwave has driven up vegetable prices, with a head of napa cabbage now over 7,000 won, 28% higher than average.

Prices of apples and pears, which temporarily went down following new harvest shipments, are also rising again.

The government, the ruling party and the presidential office have vowed to address the issue of consumer prices ahead of the Chuseok holiday as the top priority.

Han Duck-soo / Prime Minister
The government is working hard to stabilize living costs, including prices of Chuseok items.

Han Dong-hoon / Chair, People Power Party
Rising prices of fruits, livestock and fishery products are deeply felt by the public, and we must pay special attention to them.

The ruling party and the government will supply 170,000 tons of 20 items that are in high demand during the Chuseok period, the largest amount to date. They include pears, radishes, apples and napa cabbages.

They will also provide holiday funds surpassing 40 trillion won, or over 30 billion dollars, to small businesses and SMEs. Expressway toll fees will also be waived during the holiday period.

Special measures have also been devised to help rice and hanwoo beef producers, as producer prices keep plummeting.

Han Duck-soo / Prime Minister
Rice and hanwoo producers are key to farming areas. The government will minimize supply disruptions.

The government will purchase an additional 50,000 tons of last year's rice from private stockpiles and will announce rice price stabilization measures for the harvest season a month early, in September.

For hanwoo supply, discounts of up to 50% will be provided on hanwoo products year-round and introduce a mid-to-long-term development plan for the industry next month.