Riassunto analitico
After a period of chronic depression due to the World War II, Japan experienced a remarkable economic growth which went down in history as the “Japanese economic miracle” and that proceeded before the entry of the Japanese economy into a period of stagnation during 1990s. The advanced manufacturing sector, particularly the consumer electronics industry, drove the Japan’s leading role at worldwide level. Indeed, important Japanese companies like Sony, Toshiba, Hitachi and Fujitsu are the inventors of a number of revolutionary electronics products which radically changed the world and the way of life. However, from 1990 there was a reversed situation characterized by Japan’s loss of leadership in the consumer electronics industry due to a considerable appreciation of the yen after the Plaza Accord and a consequent drastic fall in exports. Moreover, fierce foreign competition from USA, China and South Korea eroded further the strategic strength of Japan. Since the Great Recession occurred in 2007 had similar drastic effects on the Japanese economy, this long period of stagnation is called “the two lost decades” because Japan lost its dominant position in many sectors, particularly in the electronics industry. Although Japan still remains the third-largest economy and the fourth-leading exporter in the world, it appears to be far behind its competitors in the digital electronics, losing important opportunities for growth.
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Abstract
After a period of chronic depression due to the World War II, Japan experienced a remarkable economic growth which went down in history as the “Japanese economic miracle” and that proceeded before the entry of the Japanese economy into a period of stagnation during 1990s. The advanced manufacturing sector, particularly the consumer electronics industry, drove the Japan’s leading role at worldwide level. Indeed, important Japanese companies like Sony, Toshiba, Hitachi and Fujitsu are the inventors of a number of revolutionary electronic products which have radically changed the world and the way of life. However, from 1990s there was a reversed situation characterized by Japan’s loss of leadership in the consumer electronics industry due to a considerable appreciation of the yen after the Plaza Accord and a consequent drastic fall in exports. Moreover, fierce foreign competition from USA, China and South Korea eroded further the strategic strength of Japan. Since the Great Recession occurred in 2007 had similar drastic effects on the Japanese economy, this long period of stagnation is called “Japan’s two lost decades” because Japan lost its dominant position in many sectors, particularly in the electronics industry. Although Japan still remains the third-largest economy and the fourth-leading exporter in the world, it is missing the digital revolution the world is living today and, in particular, it seems to lose opportunity growth in the smartphone industry.
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