New Year’s Greetings from the President (Summary)

Kaneka Corporation
January 4, 2024
I hope that all of you had a pleasant holiday.

First of all, I would like to express my heartfelt sympathy to those who have been affected by the Noto Peninsula Earthquake that occurred on New Year's Day.

My keyword for resuming work, or my new year’s resolution, is to "aggressively and boldly take on new challenges and achieve results". This year, 2024, is the Year of the Wood Dragon in Chinese astrology, a year of rapid growth with increasing momentum, and of success when we start something new. We pledge to make this year a year of striving toward our goals, never being satisfied with the status quo, in order to realize a bright and shining future.

Last year, after four years of a long COVID-19 pandemic, various events resumed and vibrancy returned. However, looking at social circumstances, geopolitical risks such as the prolonged Ukraine War and growing tensions in the Middle East have delayed economic recovery. In addition, the global economy remained stagnant due to inflation and continued monetary tightening in Europe and the U.S., as well as the shrinking Chinese economy, with no end in sight. This year will be another year in which we need to pay careful attention to global situations, including the unexpected occurrence of large-scale natural disasters.

We intend once more to make the utmost preparations in response to largely changing situations, with a sense of urgency and anticipation. In the midst of this dramatic paradigm shift, we should accurately grasp the changes in market, demand, and competitiveness, then clarify our own position. Let us structure the essential issues of the current situation to draw up a concept towards great, challenging ambition.

“Human Driven Company” is the basis of Kaneka's management philosophy. The growth of people and the results of their work are like the two sides of a coin, and we aim to simultaneously develop human resources and achieve our goals.

We will continue to face severe challenges this year but we will overcome them with the slogans of "hope" and "courage" together with the power of “kizuna” (ties). Each of us onboard the “Kaneka Ship” has great potential. The challenge for each and every one of us will surely generate great strength. Let's make Kaneka a “Good Company”, full of vitality and smiles.

                                                                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                                             Minoru Tanaka, President