Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) has decided to transfer most of the container transportation operations for Africa and Central/South America service routes to individual regional offices. The company aims to provide higher quality transportation services to its customers by operating and planning services at a physically closer location in line with economic growth in these regions.

Currently, the Latin America and Africa Group in Tokyo is in charge of operations in these regions. After the business transfer, which is planned for March 2007, is completed, the Latin America and Africa Group in Tokyo will gradually dissolve and will be integrated into the Liner Management Group, which is in charge of overall service planning/operations of container transportation. Therefore, overall operations related to the Central/South America and Africa service routes at the global headquarters will be centralized into one group for a more effective management approach.

Planning and accounting operations for Central/South America and Africa services will be transferred to trade headquarters (THQ), which will be established in Sao Paulo and Santiago. The THQ in Sao Paulo will control the Africa and South America east coast service routes, and the THQ in Santiago will be in charge of Central and South America west coast service routes.

Moreover, the company desires to implement multilateral business strategies in the Central/South America region. For this purpose, a general headquarters will be placed in Sao Paulo, which will oversee the THQ on the east and west coast of South America and other regional offices.