Don’t believe the hype! Swine flu & the Japanese Economy

Ken Worsley writes on blog, Japan Economy News, that the Japanese media is putting another spin on their spin on the H1N1 virus and the economy. Check out what he has to say.

“An article published yesterday at the Japan Times opens by telling us that the H1N1 swine flu virus is hurting industries such as tourism and retail, especially in Western Japan. Of course, economists fear that the impact of swine flu will only make a bad situation worse.

Near the top of the article, however, we get this quote:

The outbreak “could pour cold water on the Japanese economy at a time when it just started to bottom out and was about to recover,” said Toshihiro Nagahama, chief economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute Inc.

Emphasis mine. The writers of the article never comment on whether or not this assertion is true, and no figures are provided to back it up. We’re simply supposed to accept the assertion that the economy has “bottomed out” at face value? While it’s certainly hard to imagine seeing anything resembling the previous quarter’s GDP figures coming up again sometime soon, and exports and production figures are looking better, that doesn’t necessarily mean things have bottomed out.” Read the rest of the story here. For you Tweeters, check Ken Worsely here. 

Good news! Younger farmers blogging their way to success

I enjoyed reading this story on young farmers. I used to grow my own veggies when I lived in Detroit and most recently on my balcony at my current location. For the past two-weeks, I have been eyeing property an hour away that sits on 10 acres of land. It’s priced right, large enough to grow a variety of vegetables and fruits, start a mini-winery (I have wanted to make my own wine since living in wine country) and far enough to get away from the hustle and bustle of work. That is, if I learn not to take my work home with me. The problem is that I hate driving and traffic but after looking at the picture above, something is making me want to live outside the city not only to escape “the city” but to grow premium fruits and vegetables, write books, blog, create videos and drinks lots and lots of wine with friends.

Natsuko Fukue writes: “Hard work, low pay and a gloomy future. That’s the image many young people have had about farming. Figures back this point. In the next 10 years, the majority of farmers in Japan will be 70 or older according to an Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry survey, mainly because the younger generation doesn’t want to take over the family business, many young farmers said.

But a growing number of young, savvy farmers are trying to make the industry more attractive and profitable through the Internet — a modern contraption through which they hope to paint a rosier picture of agriculture.

Shinichi Soga of Niigata Prefecture may be one of the most successful farmers so far. His tomatoes are selling like hot cakes thanks partly to his popular Web log, which he started in 2006.” Click here to read more of the Japan Times article. Photo: Shinichi Soga

The Financial Crises in the US and Japan

Henry Seals of the Black Professionals in Tokyo announced that Mr. Thierry Porte will speak on, The Financial Crises in the US and Japan, at the Tokyo American Club in Shinagawa on June 4, 2009 from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm. Read Mr. Seals message below for additional information!

Please join the Harvard Club Japan at the Tokyo American Club in Shinagawa on Thursday evening June 4, 2009 as former Harvard Club of Japan President Thierry Porte speaks to our members about the financial crises in the United States and Japan. The former head of Morgan Stanley and Shinsei Bank in Japan, Porte is an ideal speaker to shed light on the epochal changes occurring in the financial world. Thierry will give us insights into what has occurred and where we are heading.

Thierry Porte served as President of the Harvard Club of Japan from 1995-2008. He is a graduate of the College, Class of 1979, and the Business School, Class of 1982. He has been active on a number of Harvard related committees and boards, including currently, among others, the Committee on University Resources, the Visiting Committee of the Harvard Business School, the advisory board of the Harvard Asia Center and the 30th College Reunion Major Gifts Committee. He is currently completing time at Harvard as a Research Associate of the Program on US-Japan Relations of the Weatherhead Center and the Reischauer Institute.

Female entrepreneurship in the Japanese economy

Due to the internet penetration and growth in Japan, women have been encouraged to start e-businesses. Previous posts on BT talks about the dire situation that some Japanese (and foreign women) find in Japan’s job market. Could the article below be the ticket to prosperity and freedom?

Japan Inc. Magazine: While the financial crisis is prompting Japanese companies to shed the traditional practices of lifetime employment and seniority-based wages, the majority of the victims of the cost-cutting ax remain part-time and temporary agency workers. As job security diminishes alternatives need to be found. One economic solution for reversing Japan’s financial challenges is female entrepreneurship. These independent businesswomen are emerging outside the traditional Japanese management but remain Japan’s greatest untapped human resource.

Click here for the rest of the story.

Good News for Japan’s Young Families?

Many Japanese women who want to work after giving birth are stymied by a matrix of government rules and private-sector policies that block access to government child care. Has change really come to women in Japan?

The Washington Post reports: “Rolling out Japan’s largest-ever economic stimulus plan, Prime Minister Taro Aso gave a much-needed gift last week to young families in the world’s oldest society.

“Amid this economic crisis, it is of paramount importance that we should protect the future of our children,” he said, while more than doubling proposed spending on child care for the coming year.

But his pledge did little to alter a long-standing consensus among business groups, social scientists and parents that Japan remains stingy and unaccommodating when it comes to encouraging women to have more children.”

Is the Japanese judiciary a hostage system?

The Tokyo Reporter gives the latest on the man Japan loves to hate: “Known for his fondness for t-shirts and shaking up Japan’s business world, Takafumi Horie, founder of Web portal Livedoor, last week resurfaced at a press luncheon where, three years after his arrest for falsifying financial reports, he denounced Japan’s legal system.

“I think the justice system in Japan is a hostage system,” said the 36-year-old dot-com pioneer at The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan. “The public prosecutors are out of control and I think something should be done.”

“Total Resistance,” a book intended to assist future executives and entrepreneurs “navigate the unique idiosyncrasies of doing business in Japan,” was written over three years, much of that time being when he was behind bars. “It took me a very long time for my feelings and emotions to settle so I could write this book,” he said.”

Click here to read the rest of the article.

Tokyo has greatest decline in residential property values

Is it time to buy? By region, the greatest drop in residential property values occurred in Tokyo, with a 6.5 percent decline.  A survey revealed that the prices are declining in nearly half of the residential areas in the Tokyo metropolitan areas. Use the BT search for real estate to get additional information on living in japan.

Land values have dropped across Japan in the past year according to statistics released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism on Monday.

Residential property values on Jan. 1, 2009 were down 3.2 percent from a year earlier, while commercial property was down 4.7 percent, the first such declines in three years. Of the 24,157 areas used for comparison, 23,435 had declined in value since the beginning of 2008. Only 21 areas experienced an increase.

The decline in average Japanese property values began in the second half of 2008 with the subprime loan problem in the United States, and sped up with the worldwide spread of the financial crisis and declining economic fortunes. The decline in property values was further exacerbated by the downturn in Japan’s condominium market and the decline in real estate financing from private investors and financial institutions.

The average drop in Japan’s three largest urban areas for residential and commercial properties stood at 3.5 percent and 5.4 percent respectively. Residential values had not dropped in three years, and commercial properties in four.

Japan Targeting Wealthy Chinese

 

The Mainichi Shimbun reports that Japan will target wealthy Chinese. I see a problem with the requirement since one of the more popular scams back in the day for many Japanese students “studying English” at two schools notorious for falsifying records and some Korean women  on a “short” visit in Hawaii obtained “proper” documentation after borrowing or sharing funds in order to meet the minimum dollar amount set by US Immigration and Naturalization.

The government has announced it will issue individual tourist visas targeting wealthy Chinese visiting Japan from July, hoping to see a boost in tourists from China during the continuing recession.

New condo offerings in Tokyo and Osaka down in February

Ken Worsley over at Japan Economy News reports: According to data released Monday by the Real Estate Economic Institute, the number of new condominiums put on the market in the Tokyo area in February fell 27.5% against a year ago, to 2,509. February was the 18th consecutive month in which the number of new units put on the market has fallen.

HSBC to offer Japan housing loans to foreigners

London-based HSBC Group said Wednesday it will tie up with two Japanese real estate companies to extend mortgage loans to foreign residents so they can buy property in Japan more easily.

The deal was to be announced Thursday. The two partners are Mitsui Real Estate Sales Co., one of the leading Japanese real estate firms, and Ken Corp., which specializes in handling real estate for foreigners.

Under the new loan program, the group’s wealth management service, HSBC Premier, will provide financial services to those with liquid financial assets worth ¥10 million or more.