ABSTRACT
The foreign firm in postwar Japan evolved from being marginal in the sixties, selective in the seventies, to aggressively competitive in the eighties. Trade and capital liberalization in the sixties and seventies, then import promotion and regional development based on technopolises (Fujita, Kuniko 1988) in the eighties created greater opportunities. More attention than ever is now given to strengthening corporate presence in Japan as foreign firms operating in Japan today overwhelmingly acknowledge two major incentives for conducting business there: the growth potential of Japan’s markets and the ideal position of Japan as a base for doing business in Asia (Table 10.1).
