Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introduction and Overview
- 2 Economic and Political Institutions in the 1970s
- 3 The “High-Water Mark” of the Japanese Economy – A “Model” of Financial Liberalization: 1980 to 1985
- 4 An Accident Waiting to Happen – The Bubble Economy from 1985 to 1990
- 5 Economic and Financial Distress from 1990 to 2001 and the Turning Point
- 6 Why Did the Economic and Financial Distress Last So Long?
- 7 The Transition of Political Institutions in the 1990s and the New Century
- 8 Political Economy of Japan's Fiscal Program
- 9 Koizumi Administration's Reform in Broad Perspective: Fiscal Consolidation and Market Reform
- 10 Japan's Corporate Governance, Labor Practices, and Citizens' Social and Economic Life at the Beginning of the New Century
- 11 Japanese Political Economy in the First Decade of the New Century
- References
- Index
11 - Japanese Political Economy in the First Decade of the New Century
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 06 July 2010
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- 1 Introduction and Overview
- 2 Economic and Political Institutions in the 1970s
- 3 The “High-Water Mark” of the Japanese Economy – A “Model” of Financial Liberalization: 1980 to 1985
- 4 An Accident Waiting to Happen – The Bubble Economy from 1985 to 1990
- 5 Economic and Financial Distress from 1990 to 2001 and the Turning Point
- 6 Why Did the Economic and Financial Distress Last So Long?
- 7 The Transition of Political Institutions in the 1990s and the New Century
- 8 Political Economy of Japan's Fiscal Program
- 9 Koizumi Administration's Reform in Broad Perspective: Fiscal Consolidation and Market Reform
- 10 Japan's Corporate Governance, Labor Practices, and Citizens' Social and Economic Life at the Beginning of the New Century
- 11 Japanese Political Economy in the First Decade of the New Century
- References
- Index
Summary
Introduction
The financial and economic distress that characterized Japan's economy for fifteen years has been largely resolved; however, Japan has not yet returned to stable, broad-based growth and price stability as of late 2007. Although the majority of observers both inside and outside of Japan regard Japan to be growing at a “moderate” rate, there continue to remain problems with the reliance on the export sector, weak balance sheets of the large number of small financial institutions, weak consumption spending by the household sector, and the low levels of measured inflation. Hence, to conclude that Japan has achieved sustainable economic stability and growth is premature as of late 2007. But, at the same time, it appears that Japan's economy will continue to grow moderately, and a return to the economic and financial distress of the 1990s is unlikely.
Many changes have taken place in Japan in the past two decades. But Japan is not finished with change. Change and reform are still ongoing, and Japan will continue to change until it reaches a new equilibrium where its political-economic regime stabilizes. It is not a straightforward task to project how Japan will change and how it will affect its politics and economy in the coming future. Nonetheless, some projections can be offered with a reasonable degree of confidence. This last chapter reviews the direction in which Japan's politics, liberalization policies, and economy are likely to go in the next several years and beyond.
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- Japan since 1980 , pp. 280 - 298Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2008