Trust Recovery Growth Vitalization - Marubeni

Interview with the President and CEO
Meeting our objectives over the past three years has given employees greater confidence,
while ingraining in all of us a corporate culture of going the extra mile to fulfill the promises
that we make. In this way, we have held firmly and unswervingly to the road to recovery. As
president, let me say on behalf of Marubeni’s directors and other employees that we stand
ready to bring the “V” PLAN to a successful close, and will take every feasible course to
realize the reemergence of a stronger Marubeni.
Question 01
The “V” PLAN for creating a stronger Marubeni has just
completed its second year. How would you rate your progress
on the plan thus far?
The “V” PLAN was launched in April 2003. Yet in two short years, we have witnessed far faster
progress in achieving our most pressing objectives—restoring confidence and trust in the Marubeni
Group and transforming ourselves into a resilient corporate group—than I initially believed possible. On
a consolidated basis, net income for the year under review rose 19% from the previous fiscal year to
¥41.2 billion, for a second straight year of record earnings. We also shored up our financial position,
reducing net interest-bearing debt to ¥1,823.9 billion, substantially lower than our target of ¥2,000
billion by March 31, 2006. Steadily accumulating earnings have also had a positive effect on shareholders’
equity, which was up ¥50.2 billion from the previous fiscal year-end to ¥443.2 billion. This, in turn,
helped our net D/E ratio improve to 4.12 times, compared to 5.01 times a year earlier. Since
our goal for March 31, 2006 calls for shareholders’ equity of between ¥400 billion and ¥500
billion, and a net D/E ratio of 5.0 times or lower, we have, in effect, successfully achieved
both these objectives ahead of schedule.
During the past year, we accelerated our push to be more selective and focused
by replacing assets in our portfolio to enhance asset quality. This drive included the
booking of losses stemming from our complete withdrawal from the Chandra Asri
Project in Indonesia, which had become the largest point of concern for the
Group. We achieved record net income even while absorbing the roughly
¥100.0 billion in losses resulting from the early implementation of this and
other initiatives. And virtually all business divisions posted higher earnings.
This was clear evidence of the steady progress we have made in
bolstering Marubeni’s earnings generation ability.
Nobuo Katsumata
President and CEO