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　In fiscal 2024, the global economy continued to face considerable uncertainty.This was driven by factors such as exchange rate fluctuations stemming from changes in policy interest rates by central banks in the U.S., Europe, and Japan; rising geopolitical risks; unpredictable policy developments including U.S. trade policy; and volatility in financial and capital markets.In Japan, the economy showed signs of a moderate recovery overall.However, the outlook remained uncertain due to persistent inflationary pressures, rising interest rates, geopolitical tensions in Ukraine and the Middle East, and continued currency fluctuations.In India, while the pace of growth showed signs of deceleration due to inflation and elevated interest rates,supportive measures such as rate cuts by the central bank helped underpin the economy, and steady growth driven by domestic demand is expected to continue.In Europe, inflationary pressures have begun to ease, prompting interest rate cuts.Although a gradual recovery is anticipated, some regions continue to experience stagnation.In China, although there are signs of economic recovery,concerns remain over downward pressure on the economy due to the prolonged stagnation in the real estate market.

　This is the very essence of ESG management, and we will return to our founding spirit and continue to contribute to society as a paint professional. Our Group's net sales in this consolidated fiscal year were 588,825 million yen (up 4.7% yoy). Operating income was 52,050 million yen (up 0.9% yoy) as a result of efforts to reduce costs and improve selling prices, despite an increase in fixed costs such as personnel expenses. Ordinary income was 49,103 million yen (down 14.9% yoy), mainly due to an increase in equity in earnings of affiliates and foreign exchange gains, despite the recording of losses related to net monetary holdings due to the hyper-inflation accounting. Profit attributable to owners of parent was 38,360 million yen (down 42.9% yoy). This was mainly due to gains on sales of investment securities associated with the reduction in strategic shareholdings and gains on sales of fixed assets associated with the sale of land in India and the sale of the head office in Japan. Based on the above results, the Company had declared an annual dividend of 50 yen per share for the current fiscal year (including an interim dividend of 22 yen per share). We look forward to the continued support and understanding of all our stakeholders.