dagblog - Comments for "Japan: Recessive Again"

Their Iron Chefs are more

Donal — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 02:10:49 +0000

Their Iron Chefs are more interesting than ours, too. Even in recession, is Japan likely to face the challenges that the US is about to face? I read somewhere (probably TTAC) that Toyota has enough cash that they could stop building cars, and still maintain their present complement of employees and benefits for ten years.

There are a number of

Michael Wolraich — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:59:02 +0000

In reply to Genghis, This is a very

There are a number of theories about the causes of Japan's malaise, and I think it's impossible to determine how big a role each factor played, but the sustenance of debt-laden banks is widely considered to be one of them. Here's an article that lays out an argument for that. It also presents Krugman's Keynesian analysis as a counterargument. Up at TPM, member Ellen has also argued that social factors in Japan have led to malinvestment by corporate execs.

I dont think Japan ever had

Deadman — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 16:30:40 +0000

In reply to Genghis, This is a very

I dont think Japan ever had to bailout their auto companies - they have for the past couple of decades continued to kick ass and take names. They do benefit however a great deal from the fact that the Japanese car makers are not responsible for the health care costs that American companies must subsidize for their employees.

Genghis, This is a very

Bluesplashy — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:08:08 +0000

In reply to Japan: Recessive Again

Genghis, This is a very interesting post. When the economic crisis started I thought about Japans 'Lost decade' but haven't read or heard much about it. I do remember hearing several years ago that the reason Japan dragged along for such a long time is that they didn't act soon enough to stop the sprial down. There was no political link to their recession. Do you know if Japan had to bail out their auto companies? Thanks

Agreed. I didn't say that I

Michael Wolraich — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 21:57:01 +0000

In reply to nice history. interesting

Agreed. I didn't say that I didn't want the foreign investment, just that the investors have been willing participants. The worst thing would be a huge sell-off of American assets. Fortunately, no governments want that and will work hard to prevent it. And I suppose that we can count ourselves lucky in a way that with the world economy in turmoil, there don't seem to be substantially better places to invest right now.

nice history. interesting

Deadman — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 21:21:11 +0000

In reply to Japan: Recessive Again

nice history. interesting article. 100% agree with you about other countries, I just hope they dont get the last laugh by selling our government bonds en masse. That to me is the best reason of all to be careful with how reckless we are in trying to save this economy. One significant reason why this economy has done so well over time is because foreigners see us as a safe haven and a great place to invest. If we become financially reckless only in order to save us from some short-term pain, they may dump our debt, leave and never come back ...