NYU Press Firms and Industrial Organization in Japan

The great successes of the Japanese economy have often been attributed to differences in the Japanese economic system. Employing an exhaustive investigation of the roles of the government and banks, firms and networks, and workers and managers, Yoshiro Miwa illustrates that the standard principles of economics explain the dominant patterns of Japanese economic phenomena. Debunking many long-held myths, Miwa deftly propels readers to a fuller, more accurate understanding of the Japanese economy. Review Miwa has earned quite a name for himself in Japan for his brilliant but biting iconoclastic views. Now, Western readers will learn what the fuss has been about. Self-styled authorities on the Japanese economy will squirm, for Miwa takes no prisoners; his logic is relentless, merciless andinevitablyright.--J. Mark Ramseyer, University of Chicago Law School This is a monumental work, demystifying the Japanese economy and contesting the conventional view that `Japan is different.' In doing so, Miwa paves the way for a new era of comparative study.--Kazuo Koike, Hosei University, Tokyo From the Back Cover Studies of Japan's economy are full of misconceptions. The conventional view of the Japanese economy argues that the Japanese economic system, described by such keywords as dual structure, keiretsu, corporate groups, main banks, and subcontract, played a critical role in Japan's economic development, and that under the guise of industrial policy the Japanese government has intervened heavily in the private sector, which has contributed much to Japan's industrial success. Neither of these argument is persuasive, however. Without using these keywords, the author demonstrates that Japan has for a long time been a world of exchange by agreement rather than by coercion, and that the standard principles of economics explain the dominant patterns of the Japanese economic phenomenon. Providing detailed information on firms and industrial organization in Japan, this volume is a doorway both to a proper understanding of Japan's economy and the study of actual firms and the market in general. About the Author Yoshiro Miwa is Professor of Economics at the University of Tokyo and author of Japanese Trade Practices and Financial Administration Reform, both published in Japanese.