A54 According to research by the Japan Foreign Trade Council Inc., in March 2007 the consolidated results of Japan's 15 lead-ing and mid-sized trading companies-from Mitsubishi Corp. to Chari Co., Ltd.-indicated that in the previous year their total sales had grown 6.7% to approximately 86.68 trillion yen. The correct answer is (c). The combined net profits increased to 1.45 trillion yen. Sales at the largest trading company, Mitsubishi Corp., increased 7.6% to 20.5 trillion yen. Sales and profits have been rising due to the increasing cost of natural resources such as crude oil and minerals.