Customer Reviews

Japanophobia:: The Myth of the Invincible Japanese

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Japanophobia was essentially an updated version of "The SUn Also Sets" in 1993 but it is nothing short of alarming how Emmott (the then japan bureau-in-chief of The Economist) already knew the signs of cracks in the Japanese economy when many others were busy extolling the marketing clout of the Sonys and the Toyotas. This book primarily updates the argument set forth in the first book with one particular phenomenon: the global expansion of Japanese multinational companies.

Emmott sketches out six reasons why Japanese firms may have rushed to invest overseas --

(1) perceived opportunities to arbitrage superior management against lower wage rates;
(2) the need to evade trade barriers;
(3) the cheapness of foreign assets paid for in inflated yen borrowed at low interest rates;
(4) the need to be represented locally to be successful in certain highly competitive markets;
(5) the opportunity to take advantage of local technology; and
(6) the pursuit of Japanese customers overseas.

Most of these still ring true in 2002. This is a fasnicating read for anyone interested in an unabashed dissection of the Japanese economy. Perhaps could be peppered with Porter's somewhat newer "Can Japan Compete?". As nail-biting and still enlightening as economic analysis can get.