Tokyo/Brussels, August 20, 2002. Asahi Glass Co., Ltd (J.AHG) announced today that it has increased its direct and indirect shareholding in Glaverbel (GLAB.BRU) to a level of 99.11% of the total number of outstanding shares.

At the end of the public offer, ended May 6, 2002, AGC held, directly and indirectly, 92.11% of the share capital of Glaverbel. The increase in the stake follows an off-market transaction between AGC and two institutional investors who had not tendered their Glaverbel shares during the offer period.

The financial terms of the transaction with the two institutional investors are identical to those of the recent tender offer: the price per share paid by AGC for the 7.00% block is EUR 140.86, which is equal to the price per share offered in the tender offer (EUR 145) minus the gross amount of the dividend paid in the meantime (EUR 4.14), as decided by the Annual Meeting of May 29, 2002.

Commenting on the above transaction Mr. Masayuki Kamiya, Director Corporate Planning of AGC stated, "We are very pleased about the outcome of this transaction and we envisage to proceed with a squeeze-out offer on the remaining 0.89% in the near future

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Asahi Glass Company, Ltd manufactures and sells a variety of glass products. Main products include flat glass for construction, glass for cathode-ray tubes, and glass for automobiles. The Company also produces electronic parts, fine chemicals, and new ceramics. In fiscal year ended March 31, 2002 the group posted net sales of USD 10.3 billion. Further information on the Company can be found at https://www.agc.com/en/.