Honda's sales of power products in fiscal 2008 totaled 6,057,000 units, down 5.7% from the previous fiscal year.

Revenue increased 0.8%, to ¥421.1 billion, due mainly to the positive impact of foreign currency translation effects. Operating income declined 38.2%, to ¥22.3 billion, from the previous fiscal year, due mainly to the negative impact of the increased SG&A expenses and an increase of R&D expenses in other businesses, which offset the positive impact of the foreign currency effects caused by the appreciation of the European currencies.

In Japan, unit sales grew 4.4%, to 550,000 units. These gains were due primarily to higher sales of pumps, sales of GX series engines for electric power generators and other products on an original equipment manufacturer (OEM*) basis and sales of compact, home-use cogeneration systems for household use.**

Sales in North America declined 22.2%, to 2,415,000 units. Factors accounting for these declines were weakness in sales of engines for OEM use in high-pressure washers and lawn mowers and weakness in sales of lawn mowers, generators and other products, due mainly to the slowdown in the housing market caused by the subprime loan issue mainly in the United States.

In Europe, sales expanded 4.2%, to 1,693,000 units. Sales of GCV series engines for OEM use in lawn mowers and sales of GX series engines for OEM use in generators, construction machinery and other applications expanded.

Unit sales in Asia, excluding Japan, increased 20.4% from the previous fiscal year, to 915,000 units, as a result of higher sales of general-purpose engines in China, general-purpose engines and pumps in Indonesia and India as well as other factors.

In Other Regions, unit sales for fiscal 2008 rose 19.2%, to 484,000 units, mainly as a result of increased sales of general-purpose engines in Brazil and higher sales of electric power generators in Australia and South Africa.

For fiscal 2009, Honda has set a target of selling 6,155,000 units, 1.6% higher than in fiscal 2008.

In Japan, Honda will work to expand sales of the GX series general-purpose engines, which are recording strong sales, and develop new sources of demand for its OEM production. In addition, Honda has become the first automaker to enter the solar cell business, and, by manufacturing and selling clean sources of energy that do not make use of fossil fuels, Honda is endeavoring to contribute to the prevention of global warming. In October 2007, consolidated subsidiary Honda Soltec Co., Ltd. began nationwide sales of Honda's originally developed thin-film solar cells through its network of sales outlets that market and install solar cells.

In the United States, Honda believes that challenging market conditions will continue. For this reason, unit sales of general-purpose engines will show a declining trend, but Honda will work to maintain sales at the level of the previous fiscal year by introducing new types of finished products, including generators.

In Europe, the outlook is for stable construction demand, and Honda is expecting to sell about the same number of engines for OEM use in construction equipment as in the previous fiscal year. Also, for core products such as lawn mowers and products such as generators that are recording strong sales, Honda will work to increase sales by expanding its marketing network and adopting other measures, such as aggressively entering Eastern European markets.

In Asia, Honda will endeavor to expand sales of the GX series engines and draw on the competitiveness of its products made in Thailand and China.

In the field of aviation, subsidiary Honda Aircraft Company, Inc. has begun to take orders for HondaJets from potential customers in the United States, Canada, Mexico and countries in Europe. Going forward, Honda will expand these sales initiatives worldwide. In addition, Honda Aero, Inc., which is the company responsible for aircraft engine business, has begun to build a new headquarters building and engine plant on land adjacent to the airport in Burlington, North Carolina. Production is scheduled to begin in 2010, and thereafter, within about one year, production will be increased to a target level of 200 jet engines a year.