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November 22, 2024
 

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Patrick Ryan
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Dec 25, 2018
Sōgō shōsha: Adapting to stay ahead as industries evolve
The sōgō shōsha's longevity, up until this point, can to a certain extent be attributed to their adeptness in being able to rapidly acclimate themselves to the changes in the business and economic environment over the years. By moving quickly and being flexible, the sōgō shōsha have been able to...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Dec 17, 2018
Global challenges lie ahead as sōgō shōsha hunt for growth
While many global companies, including the sōgō shōsha, face similar political, economic, social, technological, managerial and other risks — much too many to cover here — Japan's nearly complete dependence on natural resource and raw material imports from overseas and its shrinking domestic market...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Dec 10, 2018
Diversification, integration and the roles of trader and investor
There are some who have explained, in somewhat academic terms, the sōgō shōsha's upstream-downstream integration process by dividing it into two concepts: "diversification" and "integration."
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Dec 3, 2018
Adapting to new industries, bolstering world's infrastructure
The ability of the sōgō shōsha to survive through all the changes and transformations that have taken place over the years can, in many ways, be attributed to their adeptness in recognizing the rise of new industries early on and creating new businesses in the process, or in applying new technologies...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Nov 26, 2018
How the lifelines of the economy feed and fuel Japan
Given Japan's low food self-sufficiency ratio and dearth of energy resources, the sōgō shōsha have acted as a lifeline to Japan's economy through the import of foodstuffs and energy resources.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Nov 19, 2018
Sōgō shōsha: Understanding Japan's super suppliers and distributors
As mentioned before, the sōgō shōsha have two fundamental business models: Their traditional, core business model as trader, supplier, wholesaler and distributor of a vast array of goods and materials upstream and downstream in the supply or value chain, and as an organizer of large-scale infrastructure...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Nov 12, 2018
Tracing Japan's business giants from the late '80s to the 2000s
In the mid-1980s Japan was considered the most dynamic economy in the world and its manufacturers the most dominant. Japan's GDP growth had averaged around 7 percent per annum for the previous 30 years even with a slight downturn following the first oil shock in the 1970s, and was growing at around 4...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Nov 5, 2018
'Sōgō shōsha': Navigating the changing currents of Japan's industries
The Tokyo Olympics in 1964 marked the emergence of Japan as a consumer economy with the population growing, incomes rising and the economy expanding. In fact, the Japanese economy averaged nearly 10 percent annual growth between 1957 and 1972. Sales of TVs, refrigerators, automobiles, and housing boomed....
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Oct 29, 2018
Sōgō shōsha: Thriving through adversity in postwar Japan
This is the fourth part of a new series of reports written by industry specialists. The first 12 articles are about Japanese general trading companies, or sōgō shōsha.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Oct 22, 2018
What are the distinguishing features that define a 'sōgō shōsha'?
This is the third part of a new series of reports written by industry specialists. The first 12 articles are about Japanese general trading companies, or sōgō shōsha.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Oct 16, 2018
Reflecting the nation's history, 'sōgō shōsha' are unique to Japan
The sōgō shōsha's organization and business model is unique to Japan. This is, for the most part, because they are a reflection of Japan's own unique economic development, first during the Meiji Restoration's period of rapid industrialization and commercialization aimed at building a strong military...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INSIDER REPORT
Oct 10, 2018
Japan's supertraders — a brand unto themselves
This is the first part of a new series of reports written by industry specialists. The first 12 articles are about Japanese general trading companies, or sōgō shōsha.
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Russia fired experimental ballistic missile at Ukraine, Putin says
Ukrainian firefighters work on a spot following an airstrike in Dnipro on Thursday.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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mission sustainability vol.12 : Kose Corp.Kose takes pride in creating beauty in the world
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