The activities of Japan's general trading companies have achieved unprecedented diversity. A leader among these trading companies, ITOCHU Corporation has seen its own evolution follow the same trend. ITOCHU is a globally integrated corporation with offices in over 80 countries and operations that cover a broad spectrum of industries. Annual revenues place ITOCHU among the world's largest corporations of any type.

In April 1997, ITOCHU introduced a new way of doing business by dividing operations into independently managed "division companies." This was followed in 1999 by the adoption of the position of corporate executive officer to divide more clearly the duties of top management and the Board of Directors. The "division company" organization facilitates prompt responses to today's borderless, rapidly evolving markets, while leveraging the benefits of ITOCHU's immense scale. Social responsibilities also play a central role in all ITOCHU operations. This is exemplified by the company's acquisition of ISO 14001 certification, an international standard for environmental management systems.