AGC to Establish a Sales Office for Chemicals in Guangzhou, China

—Accelerating business development of functional chemicals to meet emerging-market demand—

AGC (Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.; Head Office: Tokyo; President & CEO: Kazuhiko Ishimura) will establish the Guangzhou Branch Office (the “branch office”) of AGC Chemicals Trading (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. in Guangzhou, China, to begin operation this summer. The move will enhance the AGC Group’s sales and marketing capabilities in South China in a bid to boost sales of functional chemicals in the country.

Guangzhou is a major city in China after Beijing and Shanghai, and is the capital of Guangdong Province, whose GDP exceeded five trillion yuan in 2011—making it the largest among the provincial regions in China. As a result, steady growth can be expected to continue in the area. Besides, high-tech industries such as automobile and electronics are growing rapidly in South China, including Guangdong Province. AGC expects demand to increase for its fluorinated functional chemicals, which have excellent properties such as heat resistance, weather resistance, chemical resistance, and electrical properties for applications including electric wires, mold-releasing films, and cleaning agents, and will contribute to reducing environmental burdens.

AGC set up AGC Chemicals Trading (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. in 2003, which has since been conducting sales and marketing activities for chemicals in China. AGC decided to establish the branch office in South China with the aim of providing community-based services, for which demand are expected to expand, and accelerating business development of functional chemicals centering on fluorinated products.

1. Name - AGC Chemicals Trading (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. Guangzhou Branch
2. Location - Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People’s Republic of China
3. Start of business - August 20, 2012
4. Description of business - Sales of fluorinated functional chemicals and provision of technical services and marketing research services on fluorinated functional chemicals, etc.
5. Product lineup - Fluorinated resin, fluorinated elastomer, fluoropolymer films, fluorinated water and oil repellents, fluoropolymer resin for coatings, fluorinated solvent, etc.

The AGC Group is pursuing one of the key measures—second round of globalization—of its Grow Beyond management policy, aiming to further bolster business in fast-growing markets where continuing high growth is expected.