Public attention is being drawn to the aggressive marketing strategies of Uniqlo and Carrefour. Fast Retailing Co., which runs the Uniqlo clothing chain, and French retail giant Carrefour both seek to obtain a major slice of the retail market by bypassing wholesalers and middlemen. Their strategy of supplying goods directly from the producers to the consumers is adding to the downward pressure on prices.
But these radical changes are not limited to the retail industry. The lifting of restrictions on commission charges and other deregulatory measures have prompted the securities industry to also undergo significant change.
Major brokerage companies have long played dominant roles in securities dealings, serving as both underwriters and sellers of new stock and bond issues.