At our financial services business, we offer a variety of financial services to our customers and dealers through financial subsidiaries in Japan and abroad, with the aim of providing sales support for our products. In fiscal 2003, net sales at our financial services business, including intersegment sales, rose by 15.1% to ¥240.9 billion, mainly because of favorable sales of automobiles in North America. Operating income was up by 37.5% to ¥61.9 billion.
In fiscal 2003, accompanying the expansion of our automobile business in Asia, we established a financial subsidiary in Thailand with an eye toward improving our support to customers. This is in addition to our other financial subsidiaries in Japan, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Brazil.

Based on the continued growth of our automobile business mainly in North America, in fiscal 2004 we expect our financial services business to expand.