In 2019, the world was already facing an uncertain future, with the US-China trade conflict and slowdown of the Chinese economy as well as the UK leaving the European Union. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit at the end of the fiscal year, bringing the global economy to a halt. Overseas, there has been an extreme slowdown in economic activities and clear restraint in capital investments, and in Japan, with outings and events cancelled as a result of the pandemic, personal consumption fell significantly. Regarding the Sinto Group’s business environment, overseas, there has been a decrease in capital investment in automotive fields and in general. In Japan, amid sluggish foreign demand and capital investment, the slowed economy due to the pandemic has had a large impact on the business environment.

Under these conditions, on a consolidated basis, we had an order volume of ¥96,714 million (13.8% decrease from the previous fiscal year), net sales of ¥102,703 million (6.7% decrease), and order backlog of ¥34,669 million (14.7% decrease), with weak results overall. For income, with the decrease in revenue, operating income fell to ¥4,734 million (15.3% decrease), and with decreased equity in earnings of affiliated companies, net income before taxes fell to ¥4,732 million (27.1% decrease). Additionally, as gains from the sale of fixed assets were included in the previous fiscal year’s accounts, net income attributable to shareholders of the parent company fell to ¥2,879 million (46.8% decrease).