Tokyo Electron changed the dividend payout ratio from 20% to 35% of consolidated net income, starting from the year-end dividend for the fiscal year ended March 2011.

Although we maintain our policy of actively investing in research and development, facilities, and human resources to establish the foundations for future growth,we made a decision to raise the consolidated payout ratio as a means of providing greater returns to shareholders after reviewing medium-term projections of business and financial conditions.

We will not only concentrate investment in high-growth areas by using internal reserves effectively in order to raise corporate value through earnings growth, but also continue to provide returns directly to shareholders by performance-linked dividend payments.