Ownership Restructuring, Marketization and Wealth Inequality in Urban China： 1995 and 2002

This paper proposes a property transformation perspective to examine the mechanisms of wealth accumulation and wealth inequality creation during China's post‐1978 transformation. It examines how enterprise ownership restructuring, marketization and state politics have resulted in greater wealth inequality between cadres and ordinary workers, between public sectors/organizations and private sectors/organizations. Mainly drawing on data from the Chinese Household Income Project conducted in 1995 and 2002, we find that the property transformation process has created greater wealth disparity among different occupational groups and among those working in different work organizations since the mid‐1990s. However, it is inconclusive whether non‐housing wealth or total household wealth are increasing at the same pace across different occupations and work organizations with the growing market penetration and the spread of privatization.     

Changing faces of Japanese defense policy: Past and future 1

During the Cold War, Japan played a strategic role by contributing to the global containment against the Soviet Union. After the Cold War, Japan became more active operationally and better prepared legally. However, it did not play significant strategic roles in shaping the post‐Cold War international order. The question now is whether Japan will play strategic roles in the future. Given the changes in the domestic political outlook, political capital necessary for redefining Japanese defense policy seems to be forthcoming. Japan could play strategic roles particularly in ballistic missile defense and U.S.‐Japan defense cooperation.     

Are Antidumping Duties for Sale? Case‐Level Evidence on the Grossman‐Helpman Protection for Sale Model

Do contributions to politicians affect trade policy? To examine this question, we have compiled a new, unique database containing information on political donations by the specific firms and labor organizations that have petitioned for antidumping protection from imports, as well as data on the outcomes of their requests. Using an empirical framework based on the 1994 “protection for sale” model, we examine the relationship between antidumping decisions and political activism. Our results indicate that money does matter. We find that politically active petitioners are more likely to receive protection and that antidumping duty rates tend to be higher for that group. In addition, the relationship between the import penetration ratio and duties imposed depends on whether or not petitioners are politically active—antidumping duties are positively correlated with the import penetration ratio for politically inactive petitioners but negatively correlated for politically active petitioners, consistent with the Grossman‐Helpman model's predictions.     

日本企业集团的演进与创新

日本的企业集团由旧财阀、财团等垄断组织改造而来，尽管经历了大半 个世纪的演进过程，其基本形态仍为“环形”和“锥形”两种。但随着科学技术的发展和国际、国内经济环境的不断变化，日本的企业集团也一直处在调整、创新之中。近年来出现的分离型企业集团和企业网络与国际跨国公司潮流交相辉映，颇受瞩目。     

Social Movements Beyond the Iron Cage: Weak Ties in Territorial Development

The incentives and governance system of organizations are important in explaining how they behave in localized development processes. This article builds on the observation that the literature on territorial development does not generally address the action of social movements. At the same time, research on social movements rarely studies their effects on the territories in which they act. This text is a contribution to fill this gap. It compares two social movement organizations: a trade union federation and a credit cooperative system operating throughout southern Brazil. Both organizations share common origins and social bases, yet their impacts on territories have been quite different. The analysis focuses on the social ties that link trade unions and cooperatives to their territories to show that governance systems may explain the performance of each organization, especially with regard to their capacity for innovation.     

Corporate Social Responsibility,Firm Value and Corporate Governance Code Revisions: The Asian Evidence*

The present study examines the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and firm value, and the effects of corporate governance code revisions on the relationship. We examine this relationship for: (i) a high‐income country, Japan; (ii) middle‐income countries China, Malaysia and Thailand; and (iii) low‐income countries India and Indonesia. We use the Heckman two‐stage sample selection bias approach for the empirical analysis. We find that Japanese stakeholder CSR and environmental CSR have a smaller positive effect on firm value compared to the middle‐income countries, but we do not find any statistically significant association for the low‐income countries. In addition, we find that only Japanese corporate governance code revisions significantly contribute to the positive relationship between CSR and firm value, which concurs with the new recommendations documented in the revised codes of corporate governance. The present study reveals that foreign major shareholders matter to the value creation of CSR in Japan and the middle‐income countries of China, Malaysia and Thailand.     

Asset Accumulation in Rural Households during the Post‐Showa Depression Reconstruction: A Panel Data Analysis*

This paper investigates asset accumulation in Japanese farm households during reconstruction following the Showa Depression. After the Showa Depression, farm households emphasized accumulation of cash and quasi‐money rather than productive assets. The accumulation of cash and quasi‐money is consistent with the buffer stock hypothesis. Evidence regarding accumulation of livestock, which is sometimes used as the buffer stock in modern developing countries, is not conclusive. The presence of well‐developed financial institutions in prewar Japan may have allowed farm households to smooth consumption via cash and quasi‐money.     

Returns to Education Using a Sample of Twins: Evidence from Japan*

The objective of this article is to measure the causal effect of education on earnings using a large dataset of twins compiled in Japan with wide‐ranging socioeconomic information. Recent research conducted in China showed that, contrary to the case in Western countries, ability bias is large in estimating the return to education. It is argued that the low rate of return in China is in part due to the competitive and exam‐oriented education system, which is similar to the system in Japan. The empirical results in our study show that the estimated rate of return to education using the sample of identical twins in Japan is 9.3 percent even after omitted ability bias and measurement errors in self‐reported schooling were corrected. Our findings suggest that the conventional OLS estimate is not significantly contaminated by potential biases in Japan.     

Determinants of households’ inflation expectations in Japan and the United States

Using a VAR model that includes survey data on households’ inflation expectations for Japan and the US, we investigate their determinants and influences on the economy and compare their properties in two countries. Short-term non-recursive restrictions are imposed taking account of simultaneous co-dependence between realized and expected inflation. We find that responding to changes in exogenous prices and to monetary policy shocks, inflation expectations adjust more quickly than does realized inflation. Compared with Japan, the effects of exogenous prices on inflation and inflation expectations in the US are not only large but also long lasting and shocks to expectations have self-fulfilling effects on inflation.     

Do borrowing constraints matter? An analysis of why the permanent income hypothesis does not apply in Japan

We use micro data on young married households from the Japanese Panel Survey of Consumers in order to analyze the importance of borrowing constraints in Japan. We find (1) that 8–15 percent of young married Japanese households are borrowing-constrained, (2) that household assets and the husband's educational attainment are the most important determinants of whether or not a household is borrowing-constrained, and (3) that the Euler equation implication is rejected for both the full sample and for the subsample of unconstrained households. These results suggest that the life cycle/permanent income hypothesis does not apply in Japan and that the presence of borrowing constraints is not the main reason why it does not apply.     

解析日本“资源外交”

日本"资源外交"是能源与外交相结合的产物,是以确立稳定获取能源和有色金属的国际供求关系为目的的国家战略及其活动,主要包括日本与资源供给国、资源需求大国、地区及全球性框架组织之间的外交活动。日本在中亚和中东积极建立高层战略对话机制,与资源供给国发展全面经济合作,参与改善地区安全,努力实现能源供给稳定化和多元化。日本资源外交具有发展大国间合作带动其他国家经济,发挥资金和技术优势实现产消国经济互补,在配合美国地区战略的同时确保本国利益等特点。同时,也将为中日关系带来加剧资源竞争、促进节能合作等方面的挑战和机遇。     

迈向“零碳”的日本氢能源社会发展研究

当前,中国面临着实现"碳排放目标"和"经济社会发展全面绿色转型"的双重紧迫任务。面临相似压力的日本选择了"氢"这种极富技术挑战但应用前景广阔的替代能源,并雄心勃勃地发展"氢能源社会",其最新进展举世瞩目。日本不但在氢能源技术突破和相关绿色产业链建设中积累了诸多经验,更重要的是凭借着绿色治理框架,通过政府、企业、社会组织等多主体的合作协同,形成了能源升级中引导企业持续技术研发和市场化推进的治理策略、"刚柔相济"的治理模式以及不同阶段差异化的治理路径。这些实践不但为中国相关现实课题的解决提供了参考,也对绿色治理理论的深化提供了契机。     

Politics of the development of small and medium‐sized firms in Japan

Since the 1980s, small and medium sized firms in Japan have adjusted themselves remarkably to the market changes of the post‐Fordism industry, and have significantly contributed to the country's economy. This paper emphasizes the interaction of the state and local producers in building a social environment for nurturing the development of small and medium‐sized firms in Japan. An important role assumed by the state is the creation of local firm‐supporting institutions which have been the foundation of constructing regional industrial system. These local institutions were effectively utilized by the local producers of small and medium sized firms. In this process, central political power and local economic power fused in organizing ‘production’ in a new way of horizontal collaboration.     

中日经济关系的转折点

中日经济关系实际上经历了两个阶段，已经由昔日中国对日本的单向依赖，转变为中国与日本的相互依存。中日经济关系稳步、健康发展的关键，不在中国，而在日本，在于日本能否战胜自卑情结，以平等的心态对待中国，把中国看成是一个平等的竞争对手和合作伙伴。这一点不但对中日经济关系的发展意义重大，而且对东亚乃至世界的经济发展与经济合作关系重大。     

COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGE IN JAPAN,KOREA, AND TAIWAN BETWEEN 1980 AND 1999: TESTING FOR CONVERGENCE AND IMPLICATIONS FOR CLOSER ECONOMIC RELATIONS

This paper seeks to explore the basis for a free trade agreement (FTA) between Japan and the Republic of Korea by comparing export patterns of these two countries with that of a nonmember—Taiwan—that is geographically close and is also a major exporter of machinery. After calculating indices of revealed comparative advantage (RCA) for 3‐digit SITC categories, we test for convergence of export patterns between each pairing of partners (Japan‐Korea, Korea‐Taiwan, and Japan‐Taiwan). We find that even though each partner has a statistically significant correlation of RCA indices, export patterns of Korea and Taiwan are converging with that of Japan, while in the case of Taiwan and Korea there is no significant convergence between their export patterns. Finally, we identify sectors where trade diversion is likely to occur and provide an upper‐bound estimate of the potential amount of trade that might be diverted from Taiwan by a Japan‐Korea FTA.     

关于区域产业管理创新的若干思考与对策建议

随着科学发展观的深入贯彻落实和国际经济形势的不断发展变化,我国各地正在掀起新一轮产业结构调整浪潮。由于市场经济机制的缺陷,新一轮产业结构调整要求各级政府产业管理部门提高经济资源的调控能力。但是,随着市场经济体制的日益完善,区域产业管理部门原有的管理手段越来越少,调控能力越来越弱,面对产业调整愿望,普遍感到力不从心,都在努力寻找新的抓手。由于观念没有更新,方向不够明确,思路不够清晰,大多感到迷茫,不知从何着手。为了进一步明确政府在产业结构调整中的角色作用,帮助区域产业管理部门找到新的管理服务手段,创新服务方式,提高调控能力,本文拟对产业结构调整对区域政府产业管理部门提出的新要求,促进产业高端化的国际经验,及我国基层产业管理职能转变与政策创新进行探讨。     

Chinese imports and income inequality: evidence from six East Asian economies

The study adopts a mixed‐methods design with quantitative and narrative accounts of inequality formation in Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan. Imports from China, but not elsewhere, have a strong positive impact on domestic income inequality. With growing volume of cheaper imports, local industries lose competitiveness or even relocate to China in some cases. This paper suggests manufacturing employment as one of the causal pathways from Chinese imports to rising income inequality, as the wage gap between the top and bottom widened following the loss of middle‐wage manufacturing jobs.     

日本对华直接投资新趋势对中日产业内贸易的影响——基于机电产品的实证分析

20世纪90年代后期以来,日本对华直接投资(FDI)的结构发生了新变化。本文采用1989-2010年的数据,分析日本FDI和中日机电产品产业内贸易的关系,结果表明,日本FDI与中日机电产品产业内贸易水平呈负相关;日本FDI转向以市场为导向,并没有改变中日以垂直产业内贸易为主的贸易模式;中国的实际贸易竞争力水平还有待进一步提高。     

A tale of two SICs: Japanese and American industrialisation in historical perspective

Late‐developing countries often adopt best practice technologies pioneered abroad, facilitating convergence toward leading economies. Meiji Japan (1868–1912) is one successful example of industrial convergence, but much of the evidence relies on national aggregates or selected industries. Using historical industry data, this paper examines whether Japan adopted new technologies faster compared to the United States. Contrary to conventional wisdom, new sectors did not appear relatively sooner in Japan, however, they did grow to economic significance faster.     

Japan＇s Bubble,the USA＇s Bubble and China＇s Bubble

This paper compares the three recent episodes of boom and bust cycles in asset prices: Japan in the late 1980s to the 1990s; the USA since the mid‐1990s; and China during the past decade. Although we have not yet seen a collapse of Chinese property prices, their increases so far are comparable to those in the other two episodes and a careful comparative study is warranted. The present paper first examines the behavior of asset prices, of property prices in particular, in the three cases, and highlights some similarities. The paper emphasizes the role played by extremely easy monetary policy in generating bubble‐like asset price behavior in the three cases. The reason for easy monetary policies is investigated. In the US case, the monetary authority was concerned about the risk of deflation in the early to mid‐2000s. The experiences of Japan and China are quite similar in that the monetary authorities of both countries were seriously concerned about the possible deflationary effects of exchange rate appreciation on the economy. The implications of such a finding for the future of Chinese macroeconomic policy are discussed.