Spring Airlines to start cheaper flights to Shanghai: Kyowa Hakko Kirin acquires ProStrakan

Spring Airlines, a Chinese low-cost carrier, on February 20, 2011, announced that it will charge 3,000 yen to limited number of passengers for one way tickets for regular charter flights between Takamatsu Japan and Shanghai.

Wang Zhengua, Chairman, Spring Airlines, made the announcement at a press conference at the government office of the Kanagawa prefecture. The service, starting from March, will carry 18 passengers on a 180-seat Airbus A320. From the second month the price of the seats will be raised to 4000 yen. He said that tickets for the remaining 162 seats will be priced at 6000 yen.

The chartered flights will arrive in Takamatsu in the morning on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays and would depart for Shanghai in the afternoon.

On February 21, 2011, Scottish bio-tech firm, ProStrakan, had been acquired by Japanese drugmaker, Kyowa Hakko Kirin (KHK) for £292 million.

KHK would pay 130p cash for each ProStrakan share, 40 percent higher than the last day trading price of the stock of the pharmaceuticals prior to putting itself on the auction.

ProStrakan produces painkillers for people suffering from cancer and people undergoing chemotherapy in Europe and the U.S. Post the buy-out news, shares of ProStrakan went up by 20 percent.

With this acquisition, KHK would be able to get into the European and the U.S market.

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Japan beat Australia to win the 4th Asian Cup title

Japan made a record of winning the fourth Asian Cup title after beating Australia by 1-0 in the final match of the Asian Cup 2011. With this victory, they have also regained their Asian Cup trophy 6 years after. They won their last title in 2004.

The substitute Tadanari Lee was emerged as the hero of Japan’s Asian Cup 2011 final match victory. He scored the match winning goal on extra time. He scored the goal in the 109^th minute. Thanks to his brilliance goal, Japan could defeat the valiant Australia and broke the record. They are the only team who won the sub-continental football title for the fourth team. Until now, neither of the teams could win the title more than three times.

Other two teams that won the titles three times are Saudi Arabia and Iran. It will be interesting to see that if any of them can touch Japan’s record of record of winning fourth Asian Cup title.

Now, fans will be watching to see how long they can hold the trophy.

The most interesting thing is that neither Japan nor Australia was tagged as hot favorite for the final match. Both teams had equal chance to beat each other.

However, the result of the match was finalized on extra minute and both teams didn’t have to look for penalty shootout.

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Japan will face the Taeguk Warriors in the Asian Cup Semi-Final

South Korea reached the last four of the AFC Asian Cup Football after defeating Iran by 1-0. Now, they will face Japan in the semi-final round and fight for a much victory. Substitute Yoon Bit-Garam scored the goal for his team in 105^th minute.

For South Korea, it is going to be a difficult task to face Japan who has won the trophy three times so far. Japan should be looking for their fourth Asian Cup title. Before that, they will have to beat South Korea to ensure their place in the final round.

Japan is now eagerly waiting to face their old cross-strait rivals at the Al-Gharafa Stadium in Doha. The match between these two teams is going to be an exciting and at the same time, the most expected game of this tournament.

Japan became the first semi-finalist team after defeating the host Qatar by 3-2 in the quarter-final round. Both Japan and Qatar are strong team on pen and paper. These two Asian teams have the highest possibility to win the title too.

Both Japan and South Korea are still undefeated. They should want to increase their undefeated form till the end of this tournament. But any of them will have to accept the defeat. Fans are eagerly waiting to see the winning team between them.

Both Japan and Korea faced each other in a friendly match in October. The match ended in a goalless draw. However, Japan was beaten by the Taeguk Warriors twice earlier in 2010.

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Japan Tax Cut for Corporates: Will it Get Enough Support?

Things are not that good for Japanese economy. Japanese government has approved a new tax system under which income tax for corporates will be decreased by 5%. Right now, Japanese corporate have to pay nearly 40% of their profit as income tax and it will become 35%. Of course, this system will have to be approved by the parliament.

Japanese government has made the guide lines to combat the economic problems at home. If approved the parliament then the new tax guide lines will be effective from 1 April 2011. You should know that Japanese fiscal year is counted from 1 April to 31^st March.

Japan has one of the highest tax rates for the corporate and as a result many companies are unhappy and some of them are even actively considering taking their business away from Japan. This is not a good sign for the Japanese economy because the economy is suffering from various problems. The main problem for the country is lack of jobs or high rate of unemployment. After the economic recession ended, jobs have not come back and as a result there is still impact of recession. So, Japanese government is now trying desperately to ensure the creation of jobs.

Some of the opposition parties may oppose this idea and it may become in the end a bit tough for the Japanese government to pass the tax guidelines in the parliament. 

Japan Sees 40.9% Export Growth in January 2010

At last, some good news for Japanese economy. Exports stats for January 2010 are out and the good news is that on year to year basis, Japan could export 40.9% more compared to January 2009. This is an impressive figure. In January 2009, the economy of the country was suffering from the worst impact of the on going global economic recession. Many people lost jobs and there was a sense of frustration among everyone in Japan.

Things are still not rosy for Japanese economy. However, what happened is that things became some better for most Asian countries and the recovery in China helped to boost the demand for Japanese products. Now, China is the largest exporting market for Japan. Now, again, there is growing demand for cars and electronic goods.

I just hope that the Toyota problem gets finished within a few months. 

Japan goes for second stimulus package to revive the economy

When the economies of many rich countries are gradually coming out of the recession, Japanese economy is still suffering. So, Japanese government has taken an extra ordinary measure to announce second stimulus package in one fiscal year. Japanese fiscal year will finish on March and now, the government is going to inject nearly $80 billion. This is a lot of money but the government is helpless.

Consumer confidence in Japan is not improving at all and this is one of the main worries for Japanese government and the business people. Another problem is that a strong Yen is not helping the country in export. Many small companies are almost becoming extinct and even some big companies have suffered very big blows. So, the government is going to help those companies to survive and this matter is very important because unemployment is exceptionally high in Japanese standard at this moment.

I think that Japan has become very rich and one of the problems that this country is facing at this moment is that people have got habit to luxury. In the past, we have seen that Japanese people are very patriotic and they are capable of doing many sacrifices. So, I think that the government should do some research and try to talk to the people openly about the current economic problem.

Will Toyota and Honda Suffer from Japanese Economy in 2010?

In 2009, we have seen US automakers suffer due to the economic recession in the country. In fact, General Motors became bankrupt and financial support from American government saved it from becoming a thing of the past. Billions of dollars from Troubled Asset Relief Program saved the company last year and still, most of the shares are owned by the United States Treasury. Now, Japanese economy is suffering and it is now news flash that Japan Airlines has filed for bankruptcy. Consumer confidence in Japan is very low at the moment and there is really no good news for the economy of the country. There is little hope for Japanese economy to revive in 2010.

Will Toyota and Honda suffer the same way like GM or Chrysler suffered in USA in 2009? I don’t think so. The main reason that I feel that Toyota and Honda will not suffer even if Japanese economy suffers its worst condition in 2009 is the fact that two companies could diversify themselves globally in a good way.

Of course, Japan is an important market for them. However we have to remember that Japanese is a smaller market compared to that of USA. Secondly, Toyota is in good position in the America market.

What can Japanese People Learn from the Economic Recession?

It seems that Japan is officially out of recession. So, the people should have some kind of sigh of relief at this moment. They should be happy but it is really too early to celebrate. May be the worst is over but the bad condition is not surely over. In fact, there are two things to worry for the global economy. Price of crude oil is increasing and it can be a cause of real worry for everybody including Japanese people. The second problem is that this time, there was less rain in India and as a result, Indian agricultural production would surely suffer a lot. India is one of the leading agricultural producers in the world. Well, the effect of Economic Recession is still evident in many places including in Miss Universe 2009 event.

So, India may need to import agriculture commodities next year and it can push the price of these products high in the international market. Well, I clearly remember that before the beginning of the economic recession- the same two things happen. I just hope that we are not heading for another recession before even getting out of this one. So, Japan should be on alert and should not celebrate at this moment.

Japan: Is Economic Recession Really Over?

Just a few days ago, we saw reports in the media that economic recession is over in Japan. There was around 0.9% GDP growth in April June Quarter compared to the earlier 3 months. This is welcome news for everyone in the country.

Business Week reported:

The big bounce—GDP plunged by at over 10% (annualized) in the previous two quarters—owes much to stimulus packages in Japan and around the world. Domestic spending, aided by an 8% rise in government expenditure, and earnings from exports both increased. The trend could continue: “We expect to see an acceleration in Japan’s real GDP growth rate for the July–September quarter,” Credit Suisse economist Hiromichi Shirakawa wrote in a note to clients.

At the same time, we have heard some news about Germany and France. It seems that things are going to improve in Korea too. Well, still I am a bit skeptical about Japanese economy. Its share market is not doing that much well and has become instable. I hope that Japan can come back strongly soon in the global economy.

Amazon in Tax Problem in Japan

Amazon may be 800 pound gorilla in Internet but it has fallen into some kind of trouble with tax matters in Japan. Well, the situation is a bit complicated. It is not a matter of tax evasion. Rather it is a matter of international trade. If you are interested about international trade and taxation then this matter should be of some interest to you.

Reuters reported:

But the company said the taxation was inappropriate and asked tax authorities in the United States and Japan to discuss whether the firm properly complied with the tax code in the bilateral tax treaty, the newspaper added.

It is matter of claim and counter claim. Amazon is saying that they have already paid the tax in USA for its income that Japanese government is claiming. On the other hand, Japanese tax officials are saying that Amazon has to pay $119 million in taxes for its operations in Japan.

Gloria Arroyo Requests Japan to Take more Workers from Philippines

Remittance is one of the top contributors for Philippine economy. Many workers from the country are in the Middle East countries and they send billions of dollars every year back home to families and relatives. However, now, because of economic recession, the country is suffering in this sector. So, President Gloria Arroyo has called on Japan to help the country. They have skilled workers who are good in English and that is why Gloria Arroyo is suggesting that her country can provide many English language teachers and IT workers for Japan.

What I understand is that Japan is suffering from economic recession. Unemployment is a major concern in the country now. So, I am not sure whether Japan can give importance to the call of Gloria Arroyo.

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Japan stock exchange is down because of exporters’ poor performance

I really feel sympathy for Japanese government because they are at the wrong time in the wrong job. It is very difficult for them at this moment to look after the economy because of economic recession, the demand of Japanese goods has decreased a lot in other countries. Japanese are export based economy and that is why if the export suffer then the whole economy may suffer a lot. All the major exporting companies like Canon, Sony, Panasonic and even Toyota are suffering huge losses and we can see report of their loss on a regular basis for the last one month. The overall condition of the economy is not good either. So, there is no surprised that the index of stock exchange of Tokyo suffered some loss today. No one knows then this condition will improve. It seems to me that it will take at least one or two years for Japanese economy to become better again. 

Obama Health care Plan: Should Japan have one too?

Today, President Barack Obama could gather the leaders of all the stake holders of the health care industry. The industry leaders informed him that they would do everything to make life better for the American citizens and would save a lot of money in the next one decade. I have written about it in my new blog: Hobby Economist. I feel that it is time that Japanese government take a serious look into their health care system. Of course, at this moment, there is no major problem for Japan in this regard but the country has an aging population and very soon, it will be major headache for the Japanese health care system. So, Japanese government should sit with the major players too.

Japan: Not a Child Country?

This is a tragedy of modernization. As a result of modern lifestyle, most Japanese people think that they must enjoy life and earn money. They also think that a child is like a burden and they cannot give birth to child. Well, some people like to point finger to the women of that country and like to say that the women are becoming too much materialistic and they do not want to get married early or they do not want to have child. However, I think that it is not the fault of the women only. The men are mainly to blame for this matter. The men are too much engrossed with money and business and they have forgotten to be romantic.

Men and women of the country have to change their attitude. Otherwise they will have very bad future as a nation.

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Even More Bad News for Japanese Economy

It is expected that Japanese government will announce another stimulus package later today. It will be the third such package during the time of economic recession. The main goal will be to fight against the growing unemployment that is causing havoc among the ordinary people. It should be noted here that job security is much more important to Japanese people compared to the European or American workers.

The main problem is that Japanese exports have fallen sharply in the last few months. Each month, new figures come and more bad news can be heard. So, it is now a big challenge for Japanese government and they are helpless because export can only increase when consumers in Europe and America are interested to buy more. Even in Japan, people are worried for the future and consumer confidence is very low.

Japan: From Inflation to Deflation

Perhaps, because the language of Japan is not English that is why, we often forget that it is the second most important economy in the world just after the United states of America. The Japanese consumers buy a lot of goods and they also export a lot to the rest of the world. Now, because of the economic recession, the consumers in the country are very frustrated and they’re worried for their future. They’re also worried about their job security and they can clearly see now that the exports are falling for the country and that means that more and more jobs will be at stake in the country.

But as a result, people are now buying less amount of commodities and this is causing a lot of money is among the traders. So, Japan is heading for deflation because the demand is decreasing among consumers.

Economic Recession in Japan: What about the Jobs?

The economic condition in Japan is going from bad to worse. All the indicators of economy just indicate one thing: things are very bad and there is no hope of coming of good time soon. We hear bad news about companies almost on a daily basis. For most people living outside of job done, this bad news are just some more headlines about the ongoing global economic recession but for people of Japan, this is indeed a matter of being employed are unemployed.

There is perhaps one thing that we should not forget and that is most people in the upon considered a matter of job security much more importantly than people of the United States. Many of them have the tradition of doing just one job for their whole life that means They enter into a company in a young age and continue to work there until they retire in old age. This is not uncommon and many people do it. So, it has caused a lot of anxiety and tension among the people and I feel that the companies and the government are not addressing the issue adequately.

 

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Hillary Clinton in Japan Visit

Hillary Rodham Clinton is the Secretary of State of USA. Now, she is visiting some Asian countries at this moment and yesterday she came to Japan. Today, she is going to Indonesia. This is the very important trip for two reasons. First of all, this is the first official visit of Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State. Secondly, it has come at a time when the global economy is suffering from acute economic recession. So, it is a very important visit for Asian countries too.

The visit to Japan came at a time when most people in the country are very worried about their future. Japanese economy is passing the toughest time since 1970s. In Japan, job security is a very important matter for most people and now, they find themselves into a position in which hardly anyone knows that if tomorrow they will have a job or not.

Hillary Clinton has assured Japanese government that new Obama administration consider Japan to be a trusted friend and USA would give its support about Japan’s relationship with North Korea.

I wonder if the visit of Hillary Clinton will help to bring assurance among the people of Japan about their economic condition.

Japanese Government Lending $13 Billion to the Banks to Keep Economic Crisis under Control

Japan is the richest country in Asia, but the Asia’s biggest economy has not gone untouched by the ongoing economic slump. Japan government is now lending 13 billion dollars to the banks and other financial companies in order to ease the credit flow in the country. Providing 1.225 trillion yen (13.2 billion dollars) to the banks, Japan is trying to ensure that the banks will have enough money so that they can continue lending money to various companies and organizations amidst economic downturn. Recently, Japanese banks have been pretty strict in lending money due to the current economic recession, even though Japanese economy has not been hit severely by the credit crunch yet.

The News reported:

"The central bank will continue providing capital proactively to the market to ensure the stable management of small- and mid-size companies," Bank of Japan governor Masaaki Shirakawa said in parliament.

The BoJ has little room to reduce its rock-bottom interest rates further so it is seeking alternative tools to repair credit markets that have been battered by the global financial crisis.

The BoJ has pledged to supply an unlimited amount of funds against eligible collateral at an interest rate of just 0.1 percent.
On December 19, it slashed its key rate to just 0.1 percent to cope with the worsening global slowdown……….

It is good to see that BoJ is taking several attempts to prevent against the current global economic downturn which has reached at its peak since 1930’s Great Depression. There is no sing of hope that this economic crisis will decrease in the near future. So, it is a good move by Japanese government that they are trying to keep the credit flow intact in the country. However, the question is that for how long the problem will remain under control by this artificial measure.

Japan Heading to Deeper Recession?

I didn’t get surprised or shocked to see more and more recession use this case because the whole world is suffering and it is something that we all have to face and we all have to deal together. In fact, sometimes I feel that it will be tough recession for rich countries compare to the people of the poor countries. After all, we have from the parts were countries have been habituated to unemployment and poverty and other problems. In fact, these things are a part of our everyday life and they do not make us afraid that much anymore. We have already experienced the oldest and what is there more to have. Think of the Japanese people. Their seats and they can afford all kind of luxuries. They have high taste and high purchasing capacity and is in a company like Nokia cannot do well in the Japanese market because most people in Japan are fond of very expensive mobile phone sets.

So, I feel that the recession time for Japanese people will be really very hard to deal with and I just hope that it does not create social instability in the country. One good thing of the people of Japanese that their very disciplined and they’re also very focused. However, the last time they really suffered a tough economic recession and bad condition happened many years ago.

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