Happy New Year, everyone.

Looking back on 2022, I think it was a year of increased more uncertainty than ever before. In addition to geopolitical risk factors such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the escalating conflict between the United States and China, and the looming possibility of an emergency in Taiwan within a few years, we have seen events such as energy issues, global inflation, fears of an economic recession, and sharp currency fluctuations that have a major impact on national policies and business activities. In this environment, swift and appropriate responses to these uncertainties will become increasingly important for our group's sustainable growth.

Business Performance
Next, I would like to discuss our group's business performance in FY2022. In the first half of the fiscal year, our group's operating results were the highest ever for the first half, with sales of 399.1 billion yen and operating income of 35.3 billion yen, due in part to strong demand for data centers and FTTx in the Telecommunication business, strong demand for smartphones in the Electronics business, and the impact of foreign exchange rates. For the second half of the fiscal year, we plan to record net sales of 790 billion yen and operating income of 68.5 billion yen for the full fiscal year, as we anticipate continued strong performance in Telecommunication and Electronics businesses.

Safety and Quality
In terms of safety and quality, it is important to build corporate culture and human relationships where we can frankly discuss what we have noticed. In the Fujikura Group, the occurrence of new serious accidents or new cases of impropriety activities concerning quality may lead not only to a loss of credibility, but also to loss of social significance. In order to improve the issues, the awareness of each and every employee is important. Please recognize that "Safety and Quality compliance are the corporate value itself". Let's work together to improve our corporate value.

Toward the Formulation of the Mid-Term Plan
FY2023 is the first year of our new mid-term plan. The new mid-term plan will be a 3-year mid-term plan up to FY2025, and we are now in the process of formulating the plan so that it will be announced in May, 2023. Under the new growth phase of the mid-term plan, we will rebuild the brand of Fujikura as the technology leader, which is our DNA, and aim to increase corporate value by creating customer value and contributing to society. Naturally, the active participation of each Fujikura Group employee in the formulation and implementation of the plan is essential. Let's work together to ensure a better future for the Fujikura Group.