The Japanese economy and its problems

For some time the Japanese Government has been heavily urged upon to adopt expansionary measures and thus contribute via increased imports to the economic recovery of Japan’s trading partners. Against this background, the following article analyses the present state of the Japanese economy and the prospects of removing the country’s huge current account surplus by appropriate policies.     

New business entrepreneurship in the Japanese economy

This article presents the results of a study focused on the role of new business entrepreneurship in the Japanese economy. Particular attention is paid to the activities of various government agencies in relation to new business entrepreneurship and to the barriers to this activity in Japan. New business entrepreneurship was defined as the formation and rapid growth of a business enterprise through unique approaches to the firm's activities.In contrast to the American stereotype of Japan as an economy of a few large, interconnected firms, it is, in fact, characterized by small- and medium-sized enterprises. Over 99% of all Japanese enterprises are categorized as small or medium and over 80% of all employed Japanese are employed by such firms. However, very few of these firms are entrepreneurial in nature. The vast majority are small firms that are either subcontractors to a single larger firm or small retail, wholesale, or restaurant establishments.The start-up rate for all types of businesses in Japan has been declining for the past 10 to 15 years. More importantly, the rate of start-up s for independent firms, as opposed to firms started by a larger firm to serve primarily as a subcontractor, declined even more sharply. This indicates a significant weakness in Japan's otherwise strong economy.The low and declining rate of new business entrepreneurship in Japan is a function of structural, governmental, and cultural barriers. Structural barriers include an acute, long-term labor shortage, high financial start-up costs due in large part to high land prices, and a shortage of venture capital funding. Government barriers include “red tape,” financial and other support for small firms that is withdrawn as they enter rapid growth, and the persistent protection of inefficient industry structures. Cultural barriers involve Japan's strong group/collective orientation, the traditional career path in Japan, bounds on creativity, and the fact that entrepreneurship is not assigned a high social value.While the government provides an extensive, well-developed network of services for small- and medium-sized firms, these programs are not designed to facilitate rapid growth into the large firm phase. The Japanese experiences and programs offer useful insights for policy and tactics by other governments.     

Japanese economy and the its exchange rate from 1985 to 2010

The paper tries to analyze the interaction between Japanese exchange rate and its domestic economy from 1985 to 2010. By employing the Mundell-Fluming model, the paper is designed to shed light on the factors that determined the exchange rate and the impact of the exchange rate on the economy, the theoretical result of the model will be enhanced with the help of graphs and statistical numbers, by the end of the paper; it concludes the important policy implication for the monetary policy and exchange rate policy.     

Japanese economy and the its exchange rate from 1985 to 2010

The paper tries to analyze the interaction between Japanese exchange rate and its domestic economy from 1985 to 2010. By employing the Mundell-Fluming model, the paper is designed to shed light on the factors that determined the exchange rate and the impact of the exchange rate oa the economy, the theoretical resalt of the model will be enhanced with the help of graphs and statistical ambers, by the end of the paper; it concludes the important policy implication for the monetary policy and exchange rate policy.     

Information Technology and the Performance of Japanese SMEs

This paper examines the impact of investment in information technology (IT) on the performance of Japanese firms. My findings imply that there is a positive and statistically significant relationship between IT and firm profitability and innovation, but only for small firms. These results underscore the importance of investment in IT for small companies. The acceptance of IT by this sector is fundamental to the success of structural adjustment in the Japanese economy.     

日本物流管理及关键绩效指标

面对日益激烈的顾客服务竞争以及物流管理中日益暴露的矛盾,为更好地了解企业自身经营状况,评估企业在行业内所处的位置,更好地评价企业业绩,更好地分析原因,更好地进行决策及综合管理,当前很多日本企业在进行物流管理时,开始采用物流关键绩效指标来改善物流服务水平,并对其进行定量管理.通过物流管理提高效率,成为当前日本企业最为重要的课题.研究发现,企业经营与物流管理之间存在十分密切的关联,在制定物流管理关键绩效指标体系时,应重视其与经营指标的关联性,在进行物流成本管理、顾客服务管理的过程中,尽量实现目标的指标化,对业绩进行检验并修订计划,通过制定关键绩效指标进行相应的管理.     

日本经济2018年温和复苏2019年下行压力增大

2018年,日本经济运行起伏不定,一季度GDP环比下降0. 2%,二季度环比增长0. 7%,三季度GDP时隔一个季度再度出现负增长,环比萎缩0. 6%。与此同时,经济在复苏中缺乏稳固基础。从主要指标看,贸易收支盈余收窄、大型企业信心恶化、通胀回升缓慢等;从外部环境看,特朗普贸易政策致使出口受到较大打击,造成了大型制造业企业信心恶化等。预计2019年日本经济受消费税上调前刺激消费提振,有望延续2018年温和复苏态势。但需要注意的是,消费税上调至10%和特朗普贸易政策升级等内外风险,将进一步阻碍经济复苏步伐。市场普遍认为,日本经济2019年进一步放缓已成定局,这也显示了日本经济复苏前景不容乐观。对此,日本政府将2019年经济增速从此前的1. 5%下调至1. 3%左右。     

Performance feedback and outward foreign direct investment by emerging economy firms

Integrating the behavioral theory of the firm (the BTF) and the self-enhancement motive of managers, this paper examines how performance feedback—the discrepancy between actual performance and aspiration levels—affects the international expansion of emerging economy firms (EEFs). Empirical results using panel data on 876 publicly-listed Chinese manufacturing companies over a 7-year period indicate that performance relative to social aspiration (i.e., peer performance) and relative to historical aspiration (i.e., firms’ own past performance) affects EEFs’ levels of subsequent outward foreign direct investment (OFDI). Specifically, performance below social or historical aspiration enhances levels of OFDI, while the effect of performance below social aspiration is stronger than that of underperforming historical results. The results also show that performance above social aspiration enhances levels of OFDI, while performance above historical aspiration decreases levels of OFDI. Moreover, we uncover the importance of considering the joint effect of historical and social performance feedback, as receiving consistent or mixed signals about firm performance may result in risk-taking behaviors that differ from those triggered by just one performance signal on its own. These findings underscore the impact of performance feedback relative to social and historical aspirations on EEFs’ OFDI activities.     

Performance implications of institutionalization process in family-owned businesses: Evidence from an emerging economy

This paper attempts to understand the role of two highly relevant founder family characteristics, harmony among family members and the degree of democratization in decision-making, in the institutionalization and adaptive capability development processes of family firms in Turkey as an exemplar of an emerging market. The paper examines how institutionalization and adaptability jointly drive firm-level differences in quantitative (i.e., sales growth, market share, and return on investment) and qualitative performance (i.e., quality of goods/services, new product development, employee satisfaction) components. Data were collected from 436 respondents in 132 family firms through structured questionnaires administered to at least three respondents from each firm. Findings indicated that among the institutionalization dimensions, transparency had the strongest effect on both quantitative and qualitative firm performance, whereas adaptability influenced qualitative performance only. Harmony in family relations increased efforts for institutionalization, whereas democracy in decision-making enhanced adaptability. Implications of these findings are discussed and several future research directions are suggested.     

Examination on Philosophy-Based Management of Contemporary Japanese Corporations: Philosophy,Value Orientation and Performance

Despite the recognition of the importance of philosophy-based management in recent Japanese management practices, there has been little effort to systematically examine this topic from a normative view. With a sample of 152 electrical machinery companies, this study attempts to identify the underlying value orientations incorporated in the normative statement of corporate management philosophy and furthermore examines the complex relationships between corporate value orientations and various performance indexes. The article shows that although the adoption of a corporate management philosophy does not contribute to corporate financial performance directly, some value orientations might contribute to non-financial performance and long-term performance potentials. Especially, CSR environmental performance might be contributed by customer orientation and harmony; human resource management performance is associated with partner orientation and harmony; growth potential might be related with global orientation, entrepreneurship, and honesty. Furthermore, the negative relationship between increase of sales effort and CSR environmental performance also implies that it deserves careful consideration and attention for a company to balance the interests of various stakeholders.     

循环经济发展探析

由于世界各国对可持续发展的日益重视,发展循环经济已经成为发达国家的一股潮流,发展循环经济有助于解决当前日益严峻的环境污染和资源短缺等问题.我国应从国外吸取那些有益的经验,推进我国经济的发展,文章提出了自己的观点.     

20世纪90年代美日经济运行状况比较分析

美日作为两大经济强国,其经济发展的态势在20世纪90年代截然不同。本文首先对两国经济在90年代的表现作了客观的描述和对比,然后从高新技术与信息技术产业的发展、经济体制、金融和经济全球化等四个角度对导致这一现象的原因作了分析,以期能对我国今后经济发展道路的选择提供借鉴。     

Competitive Marketing Strategies: A Survey of Japanese Manufacturing Firms' Competitive Performance in the British Market

The role of Japanese corporations in world markets has become so crucial that an understanding of the rules of competition employed by the Japanese is essential for all those involved in international business. The aim of this survey was to gain an insight into the role marketing plays in affecting the competitive position of Japanese firms in the British market. In particular the researcher focused on the overall approach of Japanese companies to the marketplace and the process by which they identify and bring products to the market.

The broad findings emerging from this study present few surprises, Japanese companies do not seem to suffer from a “sales orientation”, a “production orientation” or “finance orientation” as opposed to a “marketing orientation”. The in‐roads being made into the British market are based by and large on a strategy aimed at satisfying customer needs and wants. Japanese companies saw their strengths in placing emphasis on research and engineering and bringing the right product to the market quickly and decisively.     

虚拟经济与实体经济的关系分析

文章分析了虚拟经济与实体经济的关系.