OREANDA-NEWS. AUTOBACS SEVEN Co., Ltd. announced that it has reached a basic agreement with JX Nippon Oil & Energy Trading Corporation (Representative Director and President: Akitaka Ogura) and MALAYSIAN HARVEST Sdn. Bhd. (CEO: Wong Chee Leong) on a business alliance and capital participation in Malaysia in relation to retail sales and wholesale, imports and exports and other operations of automotive related goods. Details are as follows.

Purpose of business alliance and capital participation
The Malaysian economy is growing rapidly and the number of cars is rising. The Company opened the first AUTOBACS store in Malaysia in March 2012, and the second in August 2013.

The Company has now reached a basic agreement among the three parties on a business alliance and capital participation in relation to automotive services with JX Nippon Oil & Energy Trading Corporation, which has been operating a retail sales business for automotive goods in Malaysia since 2003, and MALAYSIAN HARVEST Sdn. Bhd., which is engaged in the cleaning business, sales of building materials and other operations in Malaysia. The Company will operate a business focusing on retail sales of automotive goods, a sector where demand is expected to grow in the future, using the know-how and expertise of the two companies.
The Company will continue to invest its management resources and make concerted efforts to develop overseas market that contains great business opportunity.

Method of business alliance and capital participation
The Company will acquire shares of ENEOS CAR CARE CENTRE MALAYSIA Sdn. Bhd., a wholly owned subsidiary of JX Nippon Oil & Energy Trading Corporation. The name of the company will change to ENEOS AUTOBACS CAR CENTRE MALAYSIA Sdn. Bhd. (provisional name).

Impact on forecasts of the Company
The establishment of the joint venture is not expected to have a material impact on the Company's either consolidated or non-consolidated business results for the current fiscal year ending March 31, 2014. If the Company presumes any impact on its business results for the fiscal year thereafter, it will include them in its earnings forecasts for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2015.