New Year's greetings! We look forward to your goodwill in 2014.
The following is a beginning-of-the-year speech for 2014 given by President Michio Morita at the New Year celebration held this morning.
Record
Happy New Year to everyone! We had a relatively long New Year's break this year which was also blessed with good weather, and I trust that you were able to enjoy lots of quality time with your family. I spent the holiday lying around watching sports at home as usual, which was not appreciated very much by my family. Among the various sports programs, I was most excited about Hakone Ekiden and All-Japan Collegiate Rugby Championship. Furthermore, my alma mater qualified in the National High School Rugby Tournament for the first time in 54 years. As you may have guessed, I was not a high school student 54 years ago. Regrettably, the team was beaten in the first game by the representatives of Shiga. Although I tend to forget about my school in daily life, such an event gives me the opportunity to remember the old days and root feverishly for my school.
2014 is the year of the Horse. Prime Minister Abe was also born in the year of the Horse, and persons born in this year have a very bright presence, excellent intelligence, and are full of independent spirit, sense of adventure and vitality. I think that the year of the Horse has a chance to thrive during these anxious and unforeseen times. Probably many of you here were born in the year of the Horse, and I believe this is your time to shine.
On the contrary, those who have an affinity for working together as a group rather than for the spirit of independence are said to be born in the year of the Boar. Incidentally, I was born in the year of the Boar. I believe that both these attributes, the spirit of independence and working together as a group, are requisites for a corporation, and each of us thinking on one's own, and the high competence of each member make up the competitive power of the corporation.
I expect that we will continue to face a sluggish growth in demand and global competition will be intense. However, I want to continuously pursue new products, new market exploration and new technologies in the groups that JNC has targeted for the key to survival, and also in the groups that may become the engines of future growth.
I trust that JNC Group will continue to be a prominent corporation for which you will find pleasure in working. Furthermore, I wish a prosperous year for you all. Let's stick together and do our best for the year to come.
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