In July, Advantest celebrated its 66th anniversary. It has been an exciting journey thus far. After facing a management crisis in the 1970s, we experienced heavy shocks from the bursting of the dot-com bubble and the 2008 financial crisis. But Advantest has come back stronger from each of our darkest moments by changing in response to changes in our business environment. Our measurement technology continues to support important growth sectors with solutions that have expanded over time from measurement instruments to memory testers to SoC testers. As a result, in our most recent fiscal years, FY2018 and FY2019, we were able to achieve the highest annual sales and the second highest annual sales, respectively, in the company's history.
We will continue to scale mountains and valleys in the years to come. Full-scale 5G adoption will further stimulate semiconductor demand, while growing production of the advanced semiconductors used in 5G smartphones and data centers also underpins robust demand for our test solutions. On the other hand, Covid-19 and the friction between the United States and China are beginning to affect not only the global economy but also the semiconductor supply chain. While addressing these high-priority challenges, we will continue to hone our technology to further strive for operational excellence, expand the global reach of our services and solutions, and strengthen our close partnerships with customers.
Semiconductors and semiconductor test—which guarantees the quality and reliability of devices used in a crucial and ever-diversifying array of applications—are increasingly taking on an indispensable role in the quest for a sustainable future. Advantest hopes to contribute to a better future for humanity and our planet through our best-in-class measurement technology. I believe that this is the best way to improve our corporate value, fulfill our responsibilities to all our stakeholders, and ensure that Advantest will successfully celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2054.
See you in the future.