Released by Canon Europe:

Canon Inc. Reports Results for First Quarter 2003

Canon Europe, a subsidiary of Canon Inc. and a leader in imaging technologies, today announced Canon Inc. first quarter 2003 consolidated net sales of ¥731.6 billion (€5,627 million), which represents a year-over-year increase of 12.4% over the first quarter of fiscal year 2002.

Canon reported first quarter net income of ¥71.6 billion (€551 million), a significant increase of 126.2% over the same period last year and an earning per share of ¥81.57 (€0.63).

"Despite the harsh environment, Canon was able to exceed its original sales and profit projections, announced at the beginning of this year," said Toshizo Tanaka, Senior Managing Director and Group Executive for Finance and Accounting Headquarters, Canon Inc. "In addition, on a quarterly basis, we achieved an all-time-high for profit. Better-than-expected sales of laser beam printers and digital cameras along with the positive effects of ongoing management reformation activities, which have strengthened Canon's overall profit base, were major reasons for this favourable performance."

For more detailed information and tables, please refer to our announcement of First Quarter 2003 financial results at http://www.canon.com/finance/index.html.

Canon Europe delivers consumer, business-to-business and industrial imaging solutions. Its parent company Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ) is a top recipient of patents, ranking second overall, in the US, in 2002.

Canon Europe employs approximately 11,000 people across 19 countries. For more information, visit http://www.news.canon-europa.com

This report may contain forward-looking statements which reflect management’s current views with respect to certain future events and financial performance. Actual results may differ materially from those projected or implied in any forward-looking statements. Further, certain forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions of future events which may not prove to be accurate. (Cautionary Statements for Purposes of the Safe Harbor Provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.)

Note: In this release, Euro amounts are translated from yen at the rate of
EUR 1€= JPY 130, the approximate exchange rate on the Tokyo Foreign Exchange Market as of March 31, solely for the convenience of the reader.