Financial Overview

(in millions of JPY)

	FY2011	FY2010	Rate of change (%)	Factors
Sales	3,024,355	2,861,615	5.7	-
Operating Profit	191,321	166,450	14.9	-
Ordinary income	179,317	147,905	21.2	-
Current net income	102,970	98,913	4.1	-
Tire Segment
Sales	2,536,730	2,377,305	6.7	1)
Operating Profit	185,475	153,129	21.1	-

Factors
1)
Tire Segment
<Japan>
- Sales of tires for passenger vehicles and small trucks were strong, supported by buoyant sales in the replacement tire segment, which exceeded the previous year's volumes. Demand for OEM tires, however, dropped significantly from last years due to decreased vehicle production in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011.
- Sales of tires for trucks and buses were strong, exceeding the previous year's volumes. 


<America>
- Sales of tires for passenger vehicles and small trucks fell below the previous year's results because of falling demand in the OEM tire segment. But, sales of runflat tires, ultra high-performance tires, and winter tires to automakers were favorable, surpassing the volumes sold in 2010.
- Sales of tires for trucks and buses largely exceeded the previous year's volumes.


<Europe>
- Sales of tires for passenger vehicles and small trucks stayed at the same level as in the previous year, while those of runflat tires and winter tires to automakers exceeded the last year's volumes.
- Sales of tires for trucks and buses fell below the previous year's level due to falling sales to car OEMs.
- Sales of large and ultra-large radial tires used in construction vehicles and mining vehicles significantly surpassed the previous year's volumes.

Contracts

- The Company announced that its Potenza RE070 tires have been selected as standard on the Toyota Lexus LFA Nurburgring Package for sale in Japan, the Americas and Europe. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on December 8, 2011)

- The Company said it had delivered its "ECOPIA EP150" tire as a factory-installed new car tire for the new Daihatsu "Mira e:S" that was launched in September 2011. (From a press release on September 20, 2011)

- The Company announced that its Turanza ER33 Ecopia tires are installed as original equipment on the Prius α released by Toyota in May. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on June 9, 2011)

- Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO), a business unit of Bridgestone Americas, Inc., announced that its Firestone-brand FR710 tire is standard original equipment on the all-new 2011 Chrysler 300 Limited and 300C. When equipped with the optional Touring-tuned suspension, the 2011 Chrysler 300 Limited and 300C models feature Firestone-brand Firehawk GT tires. (From a press release on May 10, 2011)

- Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO), a business unit of Bridgestone Americas, Inc., announced that its Firestone-brand Firehawk GT tires are an original equipment option on the new 2012 Fiat 500. BATO will supply the new Fiat 500 Pop and 500 Lounge models with Firestone-brand Firehawk GT tires. (From a press release on May 3, 2011)

-Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO), a business unit of Bridgestone Americas, Inc., announced that its Firestone Firehawk GT Pursuit tires are an original equipment fitment for the 2011 Chrysler Dodge Charger Pursuit.  (From a press release on April 29, 2011)

-Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO), a business unit of Bridgestone Americas, Inc., announced that its Firestone-brand Firehawk GT tires are optional original equipment on the 2011 Chrysler Dodge Charger and the 2011 Dodge Challenger. The Firehawk GT tires are included as original equipment on the Dodge Charger with R/T Plus, R/T Road & Track, R/T Max packages and Wheels & Tunes and Rallye Appearance Groups. The same tires are offered as original equipment on the Dodge Challenger SE with Super Sport Group and available on the Challenger R/T models. (From a press release on February 8, 2011)

- The Company announced that its ECOPIA EP25 tire was chosen for installation on the Lexus CT200h hybrid vehicle manufactured by Toyota Motor Corporation for its advantages in fuel economy, safety performance and maneuverability. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on January 18, 2011)

Business Plan

- The Company mapped out its mid-term management plan for 2011 covering the five-year period from 2012 to 2016. The plan highlights expansion of tire products and operations, an optimal utilization of the supply chain and focusing management resources on eco-friendly products. In 2012 Bridgestone will make capital investments on the scale of 300 billion yen worldwide, including in expansion of production capacity of passenger car tire plants in Tianjin and Jiangsu Province and of sales outlets in emerging countries. The tire maker has a target of achieving a return on assets of 6 percent by streamlining practices in purchasing as well as optimizing asset management in a bid to increase a competitive edge in cost. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on October 24, 2011)

- At a press interview held at the headquarters in Tokyo, Shoshi Arakawa, president and CEO of the company , remarked little room is left for expanding the current production in response to an increase in production of vehicles planned by automakers after this fall, by saying “100 percent supply of requested volume may be harsh during the period from October to December of this year. We will do the utmost to meet the request by talking with automakers.” He added “We are determined to secure sufficient supply in the January to March period next year. We will increase production by working on the year-end and new year holidays.” He expressed commitment to fulfill supply responsibility to customers by taking necessary steps, such as operation on holidays. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on September 7, 2011)

Award

- The Company was awarded the 2010 General Motors Supplier of the Year Award in March 2011. This is the thirteenth time Bridgestone Corporation has been given the award. (From a press release on March 21, 2011)

>>>Financial Forecast for the Next Fiscal Year(Sales, Operating Income etc.)

R&D Expenditure

(in millions of JPY)

	FY2011	FY2010	FY2009
Overall	83,900	85,100	85,700
Tire Segment	66,200	67,400	68,600

- The Company announced that it has successfully developed a new tire based on the “air-free” concept. The company engineered a special spoke design on the wheel side to support the load on the tire efficiently, which eliminates needs to fill air in the tire. In addition, the spoke is made from reusable, thermoplastic resin, improving material recyclability of Bridgestone tires. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on December 5, 2011)

- The Company announced that it has developed technology to achieve the highest grade (Low fuel consumption: AAA, Wet grip performance: a) in the rating system on the label for the new "ECOPIA EP001S" tire, which will be released to the market around July 2012. The new tire is created by combining the company's original material technology "NanoPro-Tech" with the technology to improve grip performance for development of motor sports tires. (From a press release on November 29, 2011)

- The Company announced that it has developed a new accelerator sensor that can also asses road surface conditions. The accelerator sensor, which is placed inside the tread of a tire, detects vibrations and wirelessly sends the information to the vehicle's analysis equipment. The analyzing device will determine the current state of the road surface among seven conditions and transmits the real time information to an in-car monitor display. The seven conditions are dry, semi-dry, wet, slush, fresh snow, compacted snow, and ice. By providing immediate road surface information, the new technology will allow the driver to be better prepared for rapid changes in driving conditions. According to Bridgestone, the technology provides the opportunity to alert other motorists traveling on the same road via the vehicle-to-vehicle communication systems. The company is looking to turn the new safety device into a practical business solution. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on September 16, 2011)

- The Company announced that it had developed a five-inch diameter silicon carbide (SiC) wafer for use as substrates for the next generation of power semiconductors, which is more durable and more heat resistant than traditional silicon wafers. The new wafer meets high purity standards required for large scale production wafers. Bridgestone expects it will be used in wide fields such as automobile and energy industries. The company is also working on the development of a six-inch wafer, which is in high market demand, aiming to bring the product to market by the second half of 2012. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on August 31, 2011)

Number of R&D Facilities

	North America	Central & South America	Europe	Middle East/ Africa	Asia/ Oceania	Japan	Total
Technical Center	1	0	1	0	1	2	5
Proving Ground	2	2	2	0	3	2	11

R&D Facilities in Japan

R&D Facility	Location
Technical Center	Kodaira, Tokyo
Technical Center for Diversified Products	Yokohama, Kanagawa
Bridgestone Proving Grounds	Nasushiobara, Tochigi
Hokkaido Proving Grounds	Shibetsu, Hokkaido

R&D Facilities Outside Japan

Country	City
Technical Center
U.S.A	Akron, Ohio
Italy	Rome
China	Wuxi
Proving Ground
U.S.A	Fort Stockton Columbiana
Mexico	Acuna
Brazil	San Pedro
Italy	Castel Romano Aprilia
Thailand	Nong Khae, Ayutthaya
Indonesia	Karawang
China	Wuxi

Capital Expenditure

(in millions of JPY)

	FY2011	FY2010	FY2009
Overall	201,300	182,600	178,200
Tire business (Consolidated)	174,700	159,700	156,800

- Investment activities in the emering emerging markets were focused on establishing a new plant in Pune, India, and increasing production capacity at its existing facilities in Tianjin and Wuxi, China; Non Khae, Thailand; and Poznan, Poland so as to meet growing demand.
- In advanced markets, the company launched an expansion project at its Aiken Plant in South Carolina to accommodate strong demand in North America. 
-During fiscal year 2012, the Company is planning to invest 285,000 million yen in total, of which 255,000 million yen is allocated for the tire business.

 

Investment Outside Japan

<North America>
- The Company announced that its subsidiary, Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, LLC, will establish a new plant in South Carolina to produce large and ultra-large, off-the-road radial (ORR) tires for construction and mining vehicles. The company will invest about 970 million dollars (approximately 82.5 billion yen) in this project, planning production launch in the first half of 2014. This will be the first time for Bridgestone to manufacture large and ultra-large ORR tires outside Japan. Up until now, the company has been producing these tires exclusively in Japan at its Shimonoseki Plant and Kitakyushu Plant. The new facility will be located on 2,210,000 square meters in Aiken County, South Carolina. By the first half of 2020, when the expansion project is scheduled to be completed, the plant will be able to turn out 130 tons of ORR tires a day with a workforce of some 550. In line with the increase, Bridgestone will raise its production capacity also at its Saga Plant in Japan and the Clarksville Plant of Bridgestone Metalpha U.S.A. in Tennessee, U.S.A. which are making steel cords used in ORR tires.(From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on September 27, 2011)

- The Company announced that Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations, LLC (BATO) has decided to increase further its capacity to produce radial tires for passenger cars and light trucks at its Aiken Plant in South Carolina to meet growing demand for these tires in North America. Bridgestone is investing 211 million dollars (approximately 18 billion yen) in the project to raise the plant's daily production capacity by approximately 8,000 tires to 37,750 tires by the third quarter of 2015. The Aiken facility began operations in 1998. It now has the capacity to manufacture 25,000 tires a day, mainly for radial tires for the North American market. BATO announced in July 2011 that it would augment its daily production capacity in Aiken by 4,750 tires a day by the first quarter of 2013. It has decided to step up its expansion project so as to meet the steadily growing demand in the market.(From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on September 26, 2011)

- Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO), a business unit of Bridgestone Americas, Inc. (BSAM), announced that it will invest 36.6 million USD in its Warren County, Tennessee, U.S. plant to increase production capacity by an additional 900 truck and bus tires per day. The expansion is expected to be complete in the first quarter of 2013, reaching full production in the fourth quarter of that year. The investment is part of a comprehensive expansion in U.S. manufacturing operations announced by BSAM. The project represents an investment of more than 1.2 billion USD and is expected to create more than 900 U.S. jobs. (From a press release on September 22, 2011)

- The Company announced that it will increase the production capacity of passenger car and light-duty truck tires in the U.S. By the first quarter of 2013, from January through March, it will add a new building at the Aiken County Plant, South Carolina, to raise its daily output capacity from current 25,200 tires to 30,000 tires. As demand for passenger car and light truck tires is steadily increasing over the last few years in North America and expected to continuously grow, the tire supplier has decided to expand the capacity. Approx. USD 135 million will be invested. Plans include construction of an approx. 8,1000 m2 building and employment of over 120 new workers. Construction will begin by the end of this year. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on July 23, 2011)

<China>
- The Company announced that it will establish a new plant to produce polyurethane foam for automotive seats in Wuhan City, China. The company is going to invest 11 million dollars in the project (approximately 1 billion yen), planning to start mass production in April 2012. The new facility, which will serve as Bridgestone's second urethane foam plant in China, will have the capacity to manufacture products for 300,000 vehicles a year. The company is intending to further increase the capacity in line with the market growth. The plant has 20, 000 square meters of land area, employing 80 people. The Wuhan Plant will be operated by Bridgestone (Wuhan) Chemical, Products Co., Ltd., which was formed in December 2010. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on September 20, 2011)

- The Company announced on August 8, 2011 expansion of production capacity of radial passenger car tires in China. With an investment of about 23.8 billion yen, the tire manufacturing company will enhance production capacity at its two plants in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province and Tianjin, by combined 12,900 tires per day. It will invest about 8.3 billion yen in the plant in Wuxi to complete the expansion by May 2012, which will raise capacity by 4,100 tires per day to 16,300 tires, including eco-friendly tires such as the “ECOPIA” brand tires. In Tianjin Bridgestone will invest about 15.5 billion yen in additional equipment by July 2012, which will allow the daily capacity at the plant to be raised up to 25,300 tires, an increase of 8,800 from the current level. The Tianjin Plant plans to launch production of winter types in addition to an increase in production of environmentally-friendly tires. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on August 9, 2011)

<Vietnam>
- The Company announced plans to establish a new company in Vietnam and build a new plant for producing radial tires for passenger cars. The new company called “Bridgestone Tire Manufacturing Vietnam Limited” will be set up in February 2012. Capitalized at $307.8 million (approximately 23.7 billion yen), the company will be owned 100 percent by Bridgestone. It will construct a new plant for production of radial tires for passenger cars in Dinh Vu Industrial Zone, Hai Phong City. The plant will be built at the site of about 1.02 million square meters. It will go into operation in the first half of 2014. It will hire about 1,900 employees as of the first half of 2016 and have production capacity of about 24,700 tires per day. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on December 20, 2011)

- The Company announced that it will construct a new plant in Vietnam for production of radial tires for passenger cars, the company's first inroads into the country, to meet growing demand in the global market. The plant will not only serve the domestic demand in Vietnam, but also function as an export hub for Europe, the U.S. and Japan. Bridgestone will invest about 35.5 billion yen in the new facility, which is slated to go into operation in the first half of 2014 fiscal year (April 2014 to March 2015). The Vietnamese plant will be the company's 50th production site in 21 countries. It plans to have a daily production capacity of 24,700 passenger car radial tires and to hire about 1,900 employees by the first half of fiscal 2016. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on November 15, 2011)

<India>
- The Company announced that its subsidiary in India completed construction of a new production line for truck and bus tires at the Indore Plant in Madhya, Pradesh State, and held a ceremony to commemorate the completion. The new tire production line, which was built at a cost of approximately 3.3 billion yen, has production capacity of 200 tires a day initially. It plans to raise the capacity up to 400 by June next year. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on June 18, 2011)