■ Net sales ■ Operating income 0 0 15,000 30,000 45,000 60,000 2,500 5,000 7,500 10,000 04 05 06 07 08 (Millions of yen) 6 Annual Report 2008 From Restructuring to Growth . changing our business portfolio and bolstering our lineup of high-purity inorganic products to achieve higher profitability Increased sales thanks to higher selling prices Fiscal 2008 (Jan. . Dec. 2008) saw a drop in demand for chlorinated organic solvents and liquid chlorine, and an accompanying decline in caustic soda production volume. In addition, the economic downturn in the fourth quarter affected the sales volume of our mainline products. On the other hand, caustic soda market prices rose, and we were able to push through price raises on caustic potash and sulfuric acid to compensate for higher raw materials prices. As a result of these factors, overall sales posted a year-on-year increase. Sales of chemical compounds incorporating copper decreased in line with declines in copper market prices. In our industrial gas business, problems with gas production facilities at one of our equity-method affiliates caused sales to post a year-on-year decline. As a result of the above factors, sales of commodity chemicals on a consolidated basis recorded a year-onyear rise of 3.2%, to \55.1 billion. Commodity Chemicals Net sales \55,165 million Operating income \5,650 million 33.9% Net sales/Operating income Sales by segment