ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Keita Ishii, President & COO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today that its Integrated Report 2024 has been selected as “Outstanding Integrated Report” by Domestic Equities Management Institutions of the Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) for eight consecutive years. Furthermore, for the third consecutive year, we received the highest number of votes, earning extremely high praise. Additionally, we received the Semi-Grand Prize for the second consecutive year at the NIKKEI Integrated Report Award 2024.

The following are the comments from the management institutions who highly evaluated ITOCHU’s report.
・The investment criteria and withdrawal criteria for businesses are clearly specified. The explanation of management that focuses on the matrix of three variables—ROE, profit growth, and shareholders returns—is also excellent.
・The enhancement of corporate value and reduction of capital cost are prominently emphasized, without the generic value creation story often found in other companies. It is clear that all members from top management, the board of directors, and front-line employees are committed to enhancing corporate value.
・The analysis of financial and non-financial aspects is comprehensive, and each CxO message conveys their respective functions, effectiveness, and enthusiasm. Furthermore, the report evaluates the detailed analysis of risks and opportunities related to each business and the approach to business investment in response, given the diverse businesses managed as a general trading company.
・The CEO's message clearly indicates the overall picture of management, including "corporate value," "market-oriented perspective," and "no growth without investment," with each officer (COO, CFO, CSO, CXO) discussing growth in their respective areas, which was impressive. Additionally, the CFO message discloses specific images and growth rates such as total payout ratio of 40% and ROE of 15%, which are commendable.
・The structure is strongly oriented towards messages for investors. The PDCA cycle is confirmed, and the selection and explanation of focus items each year are impactful for investors, earning high praise.
・In conjunction with the review of the disclosure content of the mid-term management plan, the messaging that shows the future vision is clarified. The content is concise and well-balanced with charts and diagrams, making it very readable.
・The CEO's thoughts are clearly conveyed. The disclosure on how to enhance value after business investments, which is crucial for trading companies, and the outcomes of each project were conducted this time, fostering expectations for future replicability, which is appreciated.
・ITOCHU Corporation's annual integrated report clearly and concisely explains the company's business overview. In addition to the progress of the current mid-term management plan, it also provides detailed breakdowns of the progress of past management plans. It particularly concisely explains the performance breakdowns of major group companies, providing useful information.

In addition, ITOCHU has received the Gold Award for the fifth consecutive year and the Best Gold Award (the only recipient among the Gold Award) for the second consecutive year at WICI Japan Integrated Report Award 2024 held by WICI Japan which consists of business companies, financial analysts, investors, as well as public offices and researchers from academia.

ITOCHU will continue to further improve its integrated reports and provide its investors and other stakeholders with useful financial and non-financial information.

■ ITOCHU Integrated Report 2024 (fiscal year ended March 2024)
https://www.itochu.co.jp/en/ir/doc/annual_report