Upward Re-Revision of Forecasts

The Yokohama Rubber Co, Ltd has announced a 2.3 per cent increase over its initial forecast for the first half of 2006 (1 April 2005 to 30 September 2005). This means the company expects to record 200 billion yen in net sales, 3.5 billion yen increase in ordinary profit (a 133.3 per cent increase) and 13 billion yen in net income (up 8.3 per cent). According to Yokohama, these upward revisions reflect an increase in the volume of sales in the company’s overseas tyre business, profit improvements in North America, and the weaker-than-expected foreign exchange rate of yen.