Mazda made plans spring 2001

Mazda made plans for spring 2001 for recruiting new graduates to engineering/administrative positions as follows.
The recruitment plans for engineering/administrative employees are almost equivalent to the 2000 plan as shown in the table below.
The characteristics of next year's recruitment activities are;
(1) Recruitment activities using the Internet reinforced.
· Entries and information such as employment guides will be provided only by the Internet.
(2) Job-Category-based recruiting will be continued for all administrative positions and some engineering positions.
(3) Year-round recruitment continued.

Information on recruitment plan over the Internet is planned to start in the late February.

.			2001 Recruitment plans	2000 Employees Expected
University /Graduate SchoolTechnical college/Junior collegeVocational college	Engineering		100	100
	Administrative		15	13
	Total		115	113
High School	Production (Mazda Junior College.)		(Undecided)	45
	Production (General)		(Undecided)	255
	Total		(Undecided)	300

*In addition to above plan, about 30 medical staffs will be employed. (For spring 2000, 25 medical staffs are expected.)

Mazda Announces FY2000

Mazda Motor Corporation today announced the latest financial forecast for Fiscal Year 2000, ending March 2000.

On a consolidated basis, Mazda expects to report a sales revenue of 2,140 billion yen(US $19.5 billion) and net income of 25 billion yen(US $228 million). This 25 billion yen(US $228 million) net income is the fourth highest since 1985.

Also, cash flow is expected to be a positive 260 billion yen(US $2.4 billion) as planned, an all-time record. As a result, interest-bearing net debt is expected to total 545 billion yen(US $5.0 billion), a large reduction by 285.4 billion yen(US $2.6 billion).

In today' s revised forecast, the consolidated sales revenue is expected to fall short by 90 billion yen(US $822 million) and the consolidated net income to fall short by 15 billion yen(US $137.1 million), compared to the previous forecast published at the time Mazda announced the first half results last year. The main reason for lower than projected net income this year is lower sales volume in major overseas markets.

Sharp appreciation of Japanese yen and one-time impact of an accounting change will have a significant management impact. To cope with these negative factors, Mazda has been working hard to facilitate company-wide streamlining, including vehicle cost reduction. Thanks to the streamlining efforts, Mazda expects to achieve 40 billion yen(US $365.3 million) of cost reduction as planned. Also, Mazda' s subsidiaries and affiliated companies have made substantial progress in improving their financial structures. In particular, Mazda is committed to exhaustive streamlining of its domestic dealers. The "One Operation" initiative symbolizes Mazda' s efforts. As a result, Mazda expects its 60 consolidated domestic dealers to report an aggregate of 4.2 billion yen(US $38.4 million) ordinary profit. As explained above, Mazda' s business structure is significantly improving due to group-wide exhaustive streamlining. While Mazda regretfully expects its net income to fall short of the plan this year, the achievement of the fourth largest net income since 1985 is the product of its continuous efforts to strengthen financial structure as explained above.

In domestic sales, sales volume for FY2000 is projected at 350,000 as planned. In overseas sales, however, Mazda expects to fall short of the target. Sales volume is expected to fall short of the previous projection by 20,000 to 655,000 due to lower than expected sales volume in Europe from intensified competition. By combining domestic and overseas sales, the projected total sales volume is 1,005,000. In domestic retail sales, Mazda is confident it will achieve a retail volume of 325,000. This will increase its market share for the third consecutive year to 5.6%. In particular, Mazda' s registered vehicle share will increase by 0.5 percentage points compared to the prior year to 7.0%. Mazda was previously projecting a year-end dividend of 4 yen per share. In light of the revised financial forecast with the lower projected profit, they regretfully plan to declare a year-end dividend of 2 yen per share.

FY 2000 will be closing in a little more than a month. Mazda will continue to focus on improving customer satisfaction and product quality. Mazda will also continue to focus on building strong Mazda brand image. Mazda will provide its customers with attractive products. In short, Mazda will strengthen its customer focus by directing all the corporate activities from the point of view of customers. Furthermore, Mazda will continue to improve its financial structure by reducing exposure to yen risk, facilitating group-wide cost reduction and further improving cash flows.

($1=109.50 yen Telegraph Transfer Middle Rate as of 2/17/00)

Find more news and information at www.mazda.com

Mazda Top Selling Brand

Mazda's retail vehicle sales in Israel for 1999 achieved the largest share in the market, and Mazda has kept its top position for the fourth consecutive year since 1996. While the sales results of the total market for 1999 slightly declined, down 0.2% from the previous year, Mazda's sales result reached 20,188 units, a substantial increase of 25.5% from the previous year. Mazda captured a 15.5% share of the market, an increase of 3.2 points from the previous year.

There were three main factors to Mazda's success in the market. First, the sales of the new 323 (known as the Familia in Japan), Mazda's core product and the most popular model on the market, reached 15,771 units (based on registered vehicles), a significant increase of 53.5% from the previous year, thus contributing to the sales growth throughout the year. Secondly, the new MPV introduced at the end of August has been well accepted and the sales results throughout the year reached 636 units, up 36.4% over the previous year. Lastly, efforts, to improve customer satisfaction by setting up large-scale showrooms and improving facilities for inspection at delivery, with a particular emphasis on enhancing the image of the Mazda brand further, have proved successful.

Since Mazda entered the Israeli market in February 1992, its sales results have improved steadily each year. In 1996, the 5th year, Mazda sold 16,873 units to become the top selling brand for the first time, with a market share of 11.6%. Mazda secured the top spot in 1997 with a 12.0% share and in 1998 with a 12.3% share. As it maintained the top spot in 1999 with a 15.5% share, Mazda has secured the top selling brand in Israel for the fourth consecutive year. Mazda has sold a total of about 103,000 units, mostly passenger cars, in Israel since 1992.

Find more news and information at www.mazda.com

Laputa Suggested Retail Prices

[AZ-Wagon RR-FS Turbo POPPER ] (Unit: 1,000 yen)

Body Type	Engine	Drive	Transmission	price(nation wide)
5-door	SOHC turbo	2WD	Column-style 4AT	1,272
		4WD	Column-style 4AT	1,369

- Driver and passenger side SRS airbag system, 4-wheel ABS with brake assist, pretensioner-equipped front seatbelts, are standard equipment.
- All 4-wheel drive models are cold region specification vehicles. Add 10,000 yen for cold region specification on 2-wheel drive models.
- Add 20,000 yen for pearl white color.

[ Laputa X POPPER ] (Unit: 1,000 yen)

Body Type	Engine	Drive	Transmission	price(nation wide)
5-door	SOHC turbo	2WD	5MT	1,123
			4AT	1,198
		4WD	5MT	1,230
			4AT	1,305

- Driver and passenger side SRS airbag system, 4-wheel ABS with brake assist, pretensioner-equipped front seatbelts are standard equipment. - All models are cold region specification vehicles. - Add 20,000 yen for pearl white color.

Find more news and information at www.mazda.com

Limited edition models

Sales of these limited edition models will be limited to the months of February and March.

"AZ-Wagon RR-FS Turbo POPPER"

"Laputa X POPPER"

Overview of the "AZ-Wagon RR-FS Turbo POPPER" and "Laputa X POPPER"

AZ-Wagon RR-FS Turbo POPPER
Base model:
AZ-Wagon RR-F turbo, in 2-wheel drive/4-wheel drive, four-speed column-style automatic transmission

Special features and specifications (differing from the base model) are listed below:
- SOHC turbo engine optimized for medium and low-speed torque, which makes handling easier in the practical speed range.
- Exclusively designed 13-inch aluminum wheels and tires, and halogen fog lamp.
- 2DIN type AM/FM radio with CD/cassette stereo sound system.
- Exclusive seats and door trim with raised-fabric
- Available body colors: Pearl White, Silky Silver Metallic, Bluish Black Pearl

Laputa X POPPER
Base model:
Laputa X, in 2-wheel drive, 5-speed manual transmission/4-speed automatic transmission
in 4-wheel drive, 5-speed manual transmission/4-speed automatic transmission

Special features and specifications (differing from the base model) are listed below:
- Exclusively designed aluminum wheels, roof-end spoiler with built-in LED high-mount brake lamp, muffler cutters
- 2DIN AM/FM radio with CD/cassette stereo sound system.
- Exclusive seats and door trim with raised-fabric
- Sporty, custom designed gauge panel.
- Metal-plated inside door handles, gearshift selector knob (automatic transmission models), parking brake lever release button, and side door handles.
- Available body colors: Pearl White, Bluish Black Pearl

Mazda Laputa

Find more news and information at www.mazda.com

Laputa X POPPER

The "Laputa X POPPER" is based on the fully-equipped mass-volume model of "X," and features exclusive aluminum wheels, a roof-end spoiler, and muffler cutters for a sporty exterior.

Mazda Laputa X POPPER

The special features in this model that enrich the interior include an AM/FM radio with CD/cassette stereo sound system, a genuine leather-wrapped steering wheel, and a exclusive gauge panel. The price, despite featuring these special features, is only 60,000 yen higher than that of the base model(two-wheel-drive model).

Find more news and information at www.mazda.com

AZ-Wagon RR-FS Turbo POPPER

Mazda Motor Corporation today launched limited editions of its micromini vehicles AZ-Wagon and Laputa. Named "AZ-Wagon RR-FS Turbo POPPER" and "Laputa X POPPER," they are targeted at young customers, especially those graduating from university this spring. Sales start today at Mazda Autozam dealers (including Autozam dealerships) throughout Japan.

Mazda AZ-Wagon

The AZ-Wagon and Laputa offer superior flexibility and economy as micromini vehicles along with their unique styling and high driving performance. Both express the distinctive characteristics associated with Mazda's brand personality-- "Stylish", "Insightful", and "Spirited" -- and have been highly acclaimed by customers.

The "AZ-Wagon RR-FS Turbo POPPER" is based on the sporty-look "RR-F turbo" model with a four-speed column-style automatic transmission. An AM/FM radio with CD/cassette stereo sound system which is a popular feature among young people was added to the new model. Unique features to this limited edition model, are the specially designed aluminum wheels and seat fabric, providing a more stylish exterior and interior. In addition, the vehicle's specifications have been reexamined and the price has been lowered by 68,000 yen off the base model (two-wheel-drive model).

Find more news and information at www.mazda.com