NPCPF

• Core Operational Posture

• The company maintains an

• Management does not provide full-year or next fiscal year projections at this time; next fiscal year outlook will be disclosed in February of the coming year. The company cites high macroeconomic uncertainty as the reason for not issuing longer-term guidance at this juncture.

• The company reaffirms its commitment to all previously stated mid-term top-line and bottom-line targets, and remains focused on achieving these goals.
• All official guidance figures provided by the company are treated as mandatory must-achieve targets, consistent with the firm's longstanding

No detailed segment-level financial results (including absolute values or revenue contribution percentages) were provided in the excerpted transcript.

• The macroeconomic business environment remains very tough and highly uncertain, with material risk of further deterioration in conditions. • A projected slowdown is anticipated for the second half of the next fiscal year, creating a challenging year-over-year performance comparison relative to the second half of the current fiscal year when raw material costs declined significantly. • The coatings industry has a high raw material cost ratio, requiring ongoing efforts to absorb input cost volatility through pass-through pricing and internal cost control. • The China market has underperformed relative to the company's other emerging markets, with more difficulty implementing price increases compared to non-China regions.

Q: An analyst asks about the planned 1.2-1.3 billion yen European business transformation expense, when profit improvements from this restructuring will begin, what the annual contribution to profit will be, and why the decision was made now, rather than waiting for a market recovery, amid pipeline concerns. / A: Management states the total 13 billion yen estimate is combined with other expenses, so they cannot disclose a breakdown of the European transformation cost at this time. The decision to restructure was approved by the board of directors because waiting for market recovery was deemed an insufficient strategy, and it is unrelated to M&A activity. Management confirms that fixed cost reductions and profit benefits will begin to appear next year and beyond, though the total magnitude of these benefits is still under review.

Q: An analyst asks why Nipsey's non-China emerging markets (including Indonesia, Turkey, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand) have delivered much stronger revenue performance than the China market, specifically asking if stronger price increase acceptance is the main driver. / A: Management confirms that these non-China markets do have higher acceptance of price increases than China, driven by two key factors: growing consumer demand for premium products in markets like Indonesia, and the need to offset persistent inflation with price hikes in Turkey, even as local sales volume stays flat. Management notes each market has unique characteristics that make direct comparison to China inappropriate, and they are evaluating how best to disclose more granular regional performance data going forward.

Q: An analyst asks management to share projections for the next fiscal year under a cautious downside economic scenario, given anticipated slowdown. / A: Management states no additional projections can be shared beyond the official statement already provided, consistent with their policy of under-promising and over-delivering. All stated guidance numbers are mandatory must-achieve targets that the company is fully focused on overachieving, even amid a tough operating environment. Management confirms next fiscal year outlook will be officially published in February next year.