Economy of Japan

This article relates to the contemporary economy Japan with leaving the historical phases of sound occupation, followed Japanese Miracle.

Introduction

The key questions are the following ones if one considers the geographical and social context of Japan:

  • Comment Japan did become an industrial great power? is
  • Which the forces and the weaknesses of the Japanese territory?

Japan is a Archipel composed of thousands of islands whose the four principal ones are Hokkaidō, Honshū, Shikoku and Kyūshū.

The archipelago is low in natural resources: neither gas, nor oil, little coal and is thus very dependant on its imports in this sector. It is to equip the Empire with Japan of the missing resources for industry that the phase of expansion in Asia/Pacifique in first half of the 20th century organized its economy towards the all-out war.

Moreover the risk of natural disasters: Seism, Tsunami, typhoon, volcanic eruption is high in Japan. 80% of the Japanese territory are mountainous. The plains are rare; largest is the plain of the Kantō where Tōkyō is, which with more than 30 million inhabitants is the greatest agglomeration of the world. The Japanese population lives mainly in the littoral plains; 80% of the population urban, are concentrated in the agglomerations of Tōkyō, Ōsaka and Nagoya.

Japanese learned how to control the physical constraints of their territory: they gain spaces on the sea (Polder), of the bridges and of the tunnels connect the islands between them, the buildings are built according to antiseismic standards, the population is educated to face all kinds of risks. Despite everything, in 1995 the seism of Kōbe makes many victims. See the article: Earthquake of Kōbe.

The Nikkei is the indicating stock-broker of the Bourse of Tōkyō. It is currently, in March 2006, enough far from its more historical high levels of the beginning of the Années 1980.

Presentation

Japan, being based on the co-operation between the State and the companies, a strong ethics of work, the control of high technologies and the relative weakness of the military expenditure (1% of GDP) progressed at extraordinary intervals until becoming the second economy of the world, behind the the United States. The economic organization of Japan refers some clean: close links between industrialists, subcontractors, and distributers in groups called Keiretsu; powerful trade unions of company, few conflicts, an annual movement of salary demands ( Shunto ) in spring; guarantee of the use with life for a big part of the employees of industry. But these elements are declining.

Japan owes its spectacular economic power with an economic model named " in goose sauvages" flight; , starting from the Japanese Miracle of the post-war period of the years 1950-60. The principle is simple: first of all, to start by locating the products in the exterior market which are badly or are sold little, importing them and to produce them in residence and to improve them while benefitting from a cheap labor to gain the exterior market. Once the product was well sold, competition appeared and that the price of labor increased too much, then the production is not considered to be profitable any more in Japan, the companies delocalize in other countries less developed to benefit again from a cheap labor. Africa and the Latin America have a cheaper labor and yet do not enter the circuit.

It is also about a relation confucéenne of " Co-évolution" of a relationship symbolic system of the " large frère" with the " small frère" where the change of fact promotion and facilitates the change of the other, like the car, naval construction, electronics and optics Japanese women of years 1970 opened the door with those of Korea of the years 1980 and those of the " small dragons" of HongKong, Singapore and Taiwan of the years 1990, before the appearance on stage of China and the Vietnam.

It owes in the same way its economic power with its extremely disciplined labor: there almost never were strikes in the companies and when they took place, people came to work but with an arm-band to express their dissatisfaction. True a " worship of the entreprise" developed, according to the ideology of a industrial Harmonie of modern Japan, leader, in " goose sauvages" flight; , of an Asian political economy.

The economic system of Japan is a dualistic system: on a side multinational firms (FMN) like Toyota for example, accompanied by a system by trading company: the Sōgō shōsha. These last are companies of information charged to collect and locate best Marchés for the FMN ( one says who them system of harvest of information is better than that of the CIA). In these companies, the wages are very high (comparable with those in Occident) and employment is " with vie" (no matter what this system is declining recently). The banking group belongs to this unit too. On another side, the small and medium-size companies (" PME" Japanese women to some extent), where the wages are very low, serve " of amortisseur" with the FMN: in the event of crisis, it is in these companies that the workers are laid off.

Industry, sector dominating of the economy, is very dependant on the imports of raw materials and energy. The agricultural sector, quite less, is strongly subsidized. The outputs are among highest of the world. Generally self-sufficing out of rice, Japan imports half of its consumption of other cereals. Its fishing fleet is one of most important in the world, and carries out almost 15% of the total catches. During three decades, the growth was spectacular: on average and except inflation 10% per annum in the Years 1960, 5% in the Years 1970 and 4% in the Years 1980. In the Années 1990 the growth was definitely weaker, primarily because of over-investments at the end of the years 1980, of the Accords of Plaza of 1985, and an economic policy of austerity intended to purge former excesses of the stockmarkets and real estate. The efforts of the government to start again the growth had little success. It was still opposed by the economic deceleration with the the United States and in Asia in 2000 - 2001.

In the long run, the overpopulation of the livable zones and the ageing of the population are two main issues. The Robotique is one of the great forces of the long-term economy. 410  000 of the 720  000 industrial robots of the world are in Japan.

The financial year finishes in March.

History

GDP

See also: GDP of Japan

Since 1968, Japan is the second worldwide economy . In 2006, the Japanese GDP rises to 4.340 billion dollars (Total GDP 2006, World Bank). The annual growth of the real GDP was of 10,1% in the Années 1960, of 4,4% in the Années 1970, and from approximately 4% in the years 1980.

Inflation

The Japanese economy knew a situation of exceptional deflation starting from the end of the year 1990. In 2001, deflation rose 0,7%. In June 2003, inflation, according to the provisional figures accounted for -0,4% in annual rhythm. At the beginning of 2006, Japan seems to join again with a moderate inflation (see the article Déflation for a more detailed description).

Statistical of the government

Other figures

Unemployment

Statistical of the government

adjusted seasonally Figures

Other figures

Investment

The overseas investments in Japan account for 5% of the GDP, against 27% in France.

Companies

See also: List of Japanese companies

See too

Sources and references

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