Japan Update

I recently gave a short presentation on Brexit at the Japan Strategic Management Society in Tokyo. The main theme was the anticipated effects on Japan and Japanese business, but as we examined the reasons for the Leave vote in Britain, it was impossible to avoid making links with the rise of Donald Trump in the […]

Over a year since the last post. We continue to live up to our title. It’s a good thing no-one relies on Tsurezuregusa for up-to-the-minute commentary. Amid the debate on television and in the press about how Japan needs to change, I popped into a coffee shop near my house, owner-managed and full of people […]

Many people expected the events of March 11th and the subsequent mismanagement and deception by the government and TEPCO to provoke a revolution of sorts; a backlash from a long-suffering public against the corruption and incompetence of the ruling politicians and bureaucrats. So far there is no sign of this happening. A documentary on national […]

The events of the last four days have put an enormous strain on the government of Japan. Politicians and TEPCO managers are struggling to find a balance between preventing panic and providing necessary information to the public at the same time as managing the multiple crises facing the country. They are hampered by a lack […]

There is a lot of pessimism about the economy, but there may be a positive side to the disaster. If the nuclear plant situation doesn’t escalate, the sense of purpose and investment in re-building may have a positive effect in the slightly longer term. The contribution of the Tohoku area to GDP is only 1%. […]

Both inside and outside Japan there appears to be a widely held view that economic decline due to relative lack of competitiveness, hollowing out of manufacturing and demographic change is inevitable. This seems to me an analysis based on the current situation, extrapolated forward on the assumption that nothing will change in Japan. Whether this […]

Mr. Kan replaces Mr. Hatoyama as Prime Minister and effectively Mr Ozawa at the head of the Japan Liberal party. Mr. Hatoyama and Mr. Ozawa were ousted for financial irregularities. Mr. Kan was also forced to resign a few years ago for a few missed social security payments in his student days. He then embarked […]

The sequence of events has been interesting. First, people fall ill and die in Mexico. The government closes down significant parts of Mexico City. The WHO issues a level 4 pandemic threat alert. Japanese newspapers report the threat. The WHO raises the pandemic threat alert to level 5. Japanese media report the increased threat alert […]

As with the last recession, it’s hard to tell there’s actually one on. The restaurants and izakaya are still full and the shoppers are as indefatigable as ever. Nevertheless, politicians are talking about extending the social safety net. One reason for this is the move away from full employees to contract and part-time workers over […]

Well, we saw his arrival as a return to grey nothingness so his departure is hardly grieved. The “all-star” line-up on the LDP side presages a return to power for a non-LDP coalition – a rare event to be treasured, but, unfortunately not inspiring much hope. The chances of such a coalition ramming through sweeping […]