Advantest Announces Coronavirus (COVID-19) Policy

TOKYO, Japan - February 14, 2020 - Leading semiconductor test equipment supplier Advantest Corporation (TSE: 6857) has announced its policy regarding the COVID-19, formulated by the company's Risk Management Group under the leadership of CEO Yoshiaki Yoshida.

Local government policies in China are severely limiting support visits to customers on the mainland. Advantest will attempt to minimize the impact on customers as far as possible with measures including online support. Product manufacturing and shipping have not been significantly affected as of February 13, but may be impacted going forward by the reduced availability of flights to China. Advantest will continue to monitor the situation and implement measures as necessary.

At Advantest's subsidiaries in China, all employees have been working at home since February 10, following the end of their New Year's vacation on February 9. However, with the permission of local authorities, a reduced number of employees resumed work on February 11 at the Shanghai headquarters of Advantest (China) Co., Ltd., and at Advantest (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. in Suzhou. Meetings are being held via web conference, and customer training is also being provided online.

In principle, Advantest is currently prohibiting all business trips to and from China. The company is also substituting phone conferences for business trips to other regions outside Japan insofar as possible.