During the consolidated fiscal year under review, the global economy continued to recover gradually, despite uncertainties surrounding the policies of the United States and other factors.
In Japan, the number of new housing starts and the floor space of non-residential building starts related to the Industrial Equipment segment of our company increased slightly recently, but overall the market remained sluggish. In the United States, housing starts remained sluggish due to the effects of high mortgage interest rates and rising material prices, but construction investment in the non-housing market, particularly in infrastructure, was steady. In Europe, there were signs of economic recovery due to interest rate cuts and the suppression of inflation, but the housing market continued to be weak in Germany and the Nordic countries.

Under such circumstances, net sales increased 6.0% from the previous fiscal year to ¥91,839 million, and operating profit increased 14.8% from the previous fiscal year to ¥14,468 million. Ordinary profit increased 8.0% from the previous fiscal year to ¥14,809 million, and profit attributable to owners of parent also increased 7.6% from the previous fiscal year to ¥11,225 million.

Although the business environment surrounding our group remains uncertain due to such factors as U.S. policy trends, the prolonged Russia-Ukraine conflict, and concerned in regard to the Chinese economy, our current business performance has remained strong.