SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - President Lee Myung-Bak vowed to create more jobs and overcome the impact of the global financial crisis in his first radio address to South Koreans early Monday.

Lee called for calm in the face of the turmoil and said foreign currency reserves of almost 240 billion dollars will shield the country from a foreign exchange crisis.

He said the current account balance is expected to return to the black in the fourth quarter, and the financial health of companies and financial institutions has improved considerably since the last crisis a decade ago.

"Following the outbreak of a financial crisis in 1997, as many as 1.49 million people lost their jobs and 58,000 companies went bankrupt. Mindful of the bitter experience, my government will prioritise maximising new job creation and minimising corporate bankruptcies," said Lee.

But he acknowledged that the outlook for Korea's export-driven economy "is not encouraging" given the slump in growth in major markets.

Mutual confidence between government and the public is the most important factor in overcoming financial turmoil, the president said, quoted by Yonhap news agency.

He urged private firms to expand investments and take the intiative now in order "to become a winner in the future."

"Any private companies choosing to increase investment to create more jobs are the true patriots. Domestic financial institutions are also asked to ensure that profitable and competitive business entities will not go bankrupt due to temporary liquidity problems."

Presidential officials have said Lee's radio address is modelled on the one given by the US president ? which dates back to the Great Depression of the 1930s.

They said Lee would give more addresses in future but no decision had been made on whether he would speak every week.

Lee, the country's first president from a business background, came to power in February with promises to boost economic growth and create jobs.

But high oil and commodity prices earlier this year, as well as the current financial turmoil, have derailed his agenda.