Japanese business leaders voice resolve to tackle key growth challenges

the government is pushing for digitalization in the agriculture sector,

Just love it when the analogs in central government decide that they can teach digitalization to another sector of the economy.

Look, maybe agriculture just isn’t going to be a strength for Japan, so why not let what will be be? Don’t pour future tax revenues down this drain please. Let risk money do the lifting where risk money sees potential.

The country's agricultural exports topped 1 trillion yen ($8.7 billion) for the first time in 2021.

So why can’t it be left to its own devices and the free market?

Kengo Sakurada, chairman of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives, placed priority on further deregulation.

Good luck with getting rules removed. Them rules keep central planners employed!!

As a group of corporate executives, we will seek ways to resolve structural and regulatory issues that would become bottlenecks to spurring innovation," Sakurada said.

By creating more regulations and using this opportunity to further in trench their dominance over the domestic market. Sorry but it’s the same model these same companies used in 1930.

Yeah, voice their resolve against salary increases for the 60% of the workforce on low salary, short term and part time contracts.

"We will aim to establish a sustainable capitalism with determination that we, companies, need to take on the role of promoting growth and distribution," Masakazu Tokura, chairman of the Japan Business Federation also known as Keidanren, said in his New Year's address.

In response to PM Kishida's "urges" for a fairer wage distribution we have voiced our resolve..to not speak of that.

Nobody want Japanese product, when China make a great copy,

I trust thierr will be many hanko’s before they send this out in a fax.

"As a group of corporate executives, we will seek ways to resolve structural and regulatory issues that would become bottlenecks to spurring innovation," Sakurada said.

….

Teaching innovation to whom?

These corporate executives are going to teach ‘hard work’ to country people that go out and do back breaking work in all weathers?

Good luck with that!

So Japan flirted with neo-liberal, market-based capitalism for a while and didn't like the results, especially how it eroded the egalitarianism that was the pride of the booming postwar economy.

We will aim to establish a sustainable capitalism...

They have a point. History tells us that when inequality becomes near current levels in the West, the masses rise up, exterminate the ruling class and create a new kind of society. That's what the govt and Keidanren are afraid of.

...maybe agriculture just isn’t going to be a strength for Japan,...

It could play a bigger role in the future, due largely to climate change. Japan's current potato shortage is due to the unprecedented storms and flooding around the port of Vancouver. Climate change is set to diminish the role of global trade and thus globalization, as Japan and others continue to "onshore" industries, especially food and other essentials.

I have hopes.

2012 is gonna be a great year.

A quick look at historical global GDP growth data (it's assumed these business guys are talking about GDP measured growth, and not greater happiness) shows that the two key factors are greater use of energy, especially fossil fuel based energy, and population increase. So given the fact of population decline and the climate emergency, to even talk about real growth in Japan is nonsense. Rather than these redundant voices, the country needs new activist political leaders who will tell the truth, shift the discourse from economic growth to ecological sustainability, life quality and fairness, and abandon the tired policies of precarity.

The silence over wages is deafening.

For regional revitalisation, expect national budgets to be so fragmented as to become meaningless, with all the what-about-us-niks whinging for their voter groups.

Establish strategic regional centres of excellence at a select number of Shinkansen-served cities focused on the regions' distinct specialisations to attract inbound talent and tourism, and outbound products and services.

The only reason JA thrives is political clout. I'm delighted that Japanese farmers have a strong voice through it compared to their peers in other G7 countries. This comes, however at a huge administrative cost to both members and consumers, as well as too often (my observation) limiting consumer choice.

Doesn't Abe own the rights to the 'virtuous cycle' thing?

@Mickelicious -inbound talent and tourism.

Erm... This sort of thing may be over.

JeffLee. -Climate change is set to diminish the role of global trade and thus globalization.

Without the globalised supply chain network (currently being taken down), climate change will turbocharge rises in prices, shortages and famines. Few developed countries can meet their own food and energy needs domestically and Japan never will. It's staple crop, rice, and the land it farms is more vulnerable to climate change than most. Not enough prairies. Too much mountain and flood plain. Globalisation made Japan rich and ended the threat of famine. As it is taken down, Japan will be hit much harder than other nations.