As we begin the New Year, I would like to offer a few thoughts on where we have been and where we are going as a company.

The year just ended was very challenging, with the European fiscal crisis and slow growth in China and other emerging markets casting a shadow on the global economy. During the year we saw government elections in some of the world's major countries, with President Obama winning a further term in the U.S. and new governments taking office in France, Russia, China, Korea and also here in Japan. We can expect each of these new governments to address longer term issues such as regulatory reform, Economic Partnership Agreements, and industrial development, while also taking shorter term measures to stimulate the economy.

From a long-term point of view, population growth is driving a clear long-term trend of economic development and increasing affluence. At the same time, this development means that there are energy, water and food resource issues that need to be addressed, along with infrastructure, health, education and other issues, particularly in developing nations. All of these need industrial solutions, so despite the ongoing severity of the operating environment, I view 2013 as a year in which Mitsui & Co. can turn toward a new phase of growth.

Last year we announced our new Medium-Term Management Plan, Challenge and Innovation 2014-Creating the future through dynamic evolution. Under this plan we are taking a holistic approach to strengthening value chains in each of our business areas, with the aim of achieving a new level of sophistication in our operations. We have added Mozambique and Myanmar to our key regions of focus, and are pursuing business opportunities in energy and a diverse range of other areas, including power generation, water, food and petrochemicals.

2013 marks the completion of the current Medium-Term Management Plan, and we will continue using our comprehensive business engineering capabilities and accelerating the progression of our business models to meet the needs in times of severe and rapid change. I hope we can continue our efforts to contribute to economic growth and prosperity for societies around the world, by taking on the challenge of business that can create value through innovation.

Thank you as always for your interest and support, and a very happy New Year to you all.

January 1, 2013

Masami Iijima
President and Chief Executive Officer

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