KARUIZAWA, Nagano Pref. -- Business leaders grappled Friday with the question of what principles should guide corporate behavior.

On the second and final day of the annual gathering organized by the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai), participants discussed what kind of management models they should pursue, following the recent accounting scandals in corporate America.

"I believe the reason corporations exist is to meet public demand in the most economically efficient manner," said Yoshihiko Miyauchi, chairman and CEO of Orix Corp.

Yotaro Kobayashi, chairman of both Keizai Doyukai and Fuji Xerox Co., said the current accounting scandals in the U.S. are the consequence of a "greed bubble."

While the recent incidents might reflect a limited number of bad apples, such a greed-driven corporate mind-set has prevailed in general, he said.

"What we can learn from (the U.S.) lesson is that (we should always ask ourselves) whether corporations are meeting the public needs," Kobayashi said. "And the market is the place where companies are judged."

Some participants said ethical behavior within corporations cannot be taken for granted unless top executives strongly advocate compliance with company rules.

"We have to straighten our ethical attitude," said Toshihiko Fukui, chairman of Fujitsu Research Institute.

The participants also discussed ways to strengthen Japan's competitiveness in the global market, with many agreeing that strong political leadership is necessary.

They concluded the seminar by calling for an urgent solution to the bad-loan problem in the banking sector, a drastic cut in government spending and tax cuts to invigorate the private sector.