ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author identifies a potential problem area that, given present trends, may probably emerge as a major destabilizing force in the trade regime. He considers how the potential problems associated with this skewed export pattern can be averted. Hostility toward Japan was still high and manifested itself in a rather ugly manner when Prime Minister Tanaka’s visit to the region, in 1974, prompted riots and demonstrations in Thailand and Indonesia. Apart from the psychological gap between Japan and the regional countries, there also emerged an economic and trade gap. Although Japan’s resource dependence ensured a persistent Japanese trade deficit vis-à-vis the raw-material-exporting countries, Japan was criticized for shutting out the manufactured exports of the regional countries. Besides the Japanese distribution system, the maze of government-established standards and certification procedures also proved difficult for Third World exporters to master and overcome.
