Japan's economy grew for the fifth straight quarter - at an annual rate of 1.9%.
Continued consumer spending + solid company investment + booming exports = Solid and balanced growth.
Last year the economy grew 3% - Japan's fiscal year ends on March 31st. It was the fourth straight year that Japan reported growth.
The January - March quarter of this year the economy grew .5% or less than half of what it grew in the Oct-Dec quarter last year.
Despite the slowdown - consumer spending and investment remained solid.
Everybody is optimistic that Japan will start spending again.
Perhaps Japan doesn't want to be outdone by its neighbor to the south and west.
The interest rates are still zero percent! So, borrowing is an option for company growth and taking out loans.
Additionally, Japan has money in the bank....my goodness, they haven't been spending their paychecks for the past 10+ years but they still brought it home.
And Japan starts spending again.....watch out!
Japan is back!
What do you think?
I have always believed mased on my own experience doing business there that Japan should rank higher on the radar screen of American companies assessing markets in Asia. As discussed in a post on my Going Global blog, while everyone is so focused on the huge emerging opportunities in China and India, they seem to lose focus on the fact that Japan is a market of 125 million middle class consumers with a common lnaguage and currency and, of extreme importance to many American companies, many of the same production methods and technological preferences that frequently determine product selection as found in the US.
There is no question that there is a sustainable business opportunity in Japan for American companies willing to take the time to make the relationships necessary to break into the market.
Craig Maginness
ExIn Global Strategies
Posted by: Craig Maginness | June 26, 2006 3:34 PM | Permalink to Comment