Japanese customers get access to some of the best universities in Asia according to QS rankings

"Japan maintains one of the strongest university systems in Asia, dominating the top ranks...Japan is still the best-represented nation, with five universities in the top 10 and eight in the top 20 places. In addition, more than a quarter of the top 200 places are taken up by Japan's institutions, reflecting a very strong overall higher education system...The universities of Tokyo and Kyoto each moved up one place to 4th and 7th respectively compared to 2010.".

Source:ASIA: Hong Kong and Japan lead regional rankings
Yojana Sharma
29 May 2011
Issue: 173
University World News

The number of Japanese customers who travelled abroad was down 3.4% from the year earlier

“the number of Japanese tourists to foreign countries shrunk for the third straight year to 15.446 million, down 3.4 percent from the year earlier.”



Source: Foreign visitors to Japan decline in 2009 for first time in 6 years
January 26, 2010
Mainichi Japan
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20100126p2a00m0na005000c.html

AirAsiaX sees Japanese customers as a large market for discount air travel services

"When I look at Japan, I see, yes, the population may not be growing, but it is still a big market. It has a population of 120 million to 130 million. Out of that, if you take the young people in the age group of 16 to 40, in absolute numbers, the market is quite big," AirAsia X Chief Executive Officer Azran Osman Rani


Source: Malaysia budget carrier AirAsia bullish on Japan
By VIVIAN HO
Kyodo News
Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20100126a4.html

Japanese customers see national debt expanding to 973 trillion yen by the end of the fiscal year according to the IMF

“The national debt will probably swell to ¥973 trillion by the end of fiscal 2010, according to the Finance Ministry. Japan, with a shrinking population and entrenched deflation, may see its debt burden jump to 246 percent of gross domestic product by 2014, according to the International Monetary Fund. ”

Source: Public debt to hit ¥973 trillion
Bloomberg
Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20100126n2.html

Japanese Customers drawn to McDonalds larger sized burgers (Texas Burger) as sales beat expectations

“McDonald's Holdings Co. (Japan)...is now targeting sales of 35 million supersize burgers through the end of March, a 25% jump from its earlier target. The increase was a result of stronger-than-expected sales of the Texas Burger, which the restaurant chain began selling on Jan. 15 for 400-420 yen.”


Source: McDonald's Japan Lifts Sales Target For Big Burgers
Thursday, January 21, 2010
The Nikkei
http://www.nni.nikkei.co.jp/e/fr/tnks/Nni20100120D20JFA01.htm

Japanese customers see the secondhand book market valued at around 2 trillion yen per annum

“..the (second hand) book market, currently worth around ¥2 trillion, has little room to grow... Hiroshi Sato noted there are many other secondhand items in the home that can be merchandised, including CDs, DVDs, clothing, sporting goods, musical instruments, watches, jewelry and brand goods. The market has the potential to grow as more items are introduced.”


Source: TAKING A CHANCE
Bookoff chief guides firm out of attitude bind
By TAKAHIRO FUKADA
Saturday, Jan. 23, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20100123f1.html

Japanese customers see rise in unfunded pension liabilities rise

“Japan Airlines Corp.'s $25.5 billion bankruptcy may be the impetus for such companies as Hitachi Ltd. and Toyota Motor Corp., Japan's biggest private employers, to shore up their deficit-ridden pension plans. Japan's top 278 companies were a combined ¥21.5 trillion behind on their pension funding in fiscal 2009, a 50 percent jump from the previous year, according to Daiwa Institute of Research in Tokyo. Hitachi's unfunded liabilities totaled ¥1.1 trillion — triple the deficit that helped push Japan's former national carrier into bankruptcy.”


Source: JAL may spark major revamp in pension finance
Change critical if other firms to avoid carrier's underfunded fate
By JASON CLENFIELD and TOMOKO YAMAZAKI
Bloomberg
Friday, Jan. 22, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20100122n3.html

Japanese customers (salrymen) see their average monthly allowance decrease

“In recent years company employees have no more than 20,000 yen to 30,000 yen a month as allowance money. After deducting lunch costs and others, you have at most 10,000 yen for after-work drinks. If you spend 5,000 yen a night, you can only go out twice a month.”


Source: 50-yen 'izakayas' emerge for cash-strapped workers
16th January 2010/01/20
http://www.japantoday.com/category/shukan-post/view/50-yen-izakayas-emerge-for-cash-strapped-worker

Japanese customers drawn to Prius as it gets up to 90 miles a gallon fuel efficiency

“The new Prius gets a combined 50 miles per gallon, compared with 46 mpg for the 2009 model, according to Toyota. It does even better under Japanese government testing standards, at 38 kilometers per liter, which converts to 90 miles per gallon.”


Source: Prius No. 1 in Japan sales as green interest grows
By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer
Jan 8th, 2010
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_JAPAN_TOYOTA_PRIUS_ASOL-?SITE=YOMIURI&SECTION=HOSTED_ASIA&TEMPLATE=ap_business.html

Japanese customers saw 740,000 manufacturing jobs dissapear in 2009

“About 740,000 Japanese manufacturing jobs disappeared last year through November, the statistics bureau said. More than a third of factory capacity sits idle, trade ministry figures show… industrial output is 19.8 percent below its prerecession peak, with the country shipping 35 percent fewer goods in November than the peak of ¥7.6 trillion ($82 billion) in March 2008. "

Source: Manufacturing exodus overseas leaving prefecture hollowed out
By JASON CLENFIELD
Bloomberg
The Japan Times: Monday, Jan. 11, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/print/nb20100111n2.html

Japanese scientists awared 10 Nobel peace prizes in the last decade, six in chemistry & four in physics

"The people who win today usually did their prize-worthy work 20 to 50 years ago. So it has been with most of the 10 Nobels awarded to Japanese scientists in the past decade, six in chemistry and four in physics. Those Nobels suggest that during the “near-totalitarian” decades, at state universities supposedly crippled by Confucianist hierarchies, Japanese scientists were actually doing some valuable basic research."


Source: What Nobel Prizes Say About Japan
October 7, 2010
WSJ
http://blogs.wsj.com/japanrealtime/2010/10/07/what-nobel-prizes-say-about-japan/

Majority of Japanese customers have everything they want so retailers struggle

“.. the most intractable problem for the retail sector is that the majority of Japanese have everything they need. There are fewer new Japanese taking the place of older consumers, and those who are coming of consumption age are facing poorer employment opportunities, thus giving them less guaranteed disposable income than their parents had when they entered the work force. This new layer of consumers grew up during a time when low price competition became the norm. They have been conditioned to seek out bargains and gain personal satisfaction from saving money.”

Source: Fast fashion is not what's ailing Japan's economy
By PHILIP BRASOR
The Japan Times: Sunday, Jan. 10, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/print/fd20100110pb.html

Japanese customers see the number of foreign visitors to Japan drop

“The number of foreigners entering Japan last year declined by more than 1.5 million from a year earlier, marking the 2nd biggest drop since 1950…The justice ministry said 7 million 580,000 foreigners entered Japan last year -- down 17.1 percent, or 1 million 560,000, from the previous year. This is the 2nd largest decrease since the ministry began compiling the data. The number of short-stay visitors fell sharply.”

Source: Foreign visitors down 17.1% in 2009
2010/01/13
NHK World
http://www.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/13_05.html

Japanese customers vote Prius the number one selling car in Japan

“The Prius was the top-selling model in Japan (20,000 a month in 2009) for every month from May last year - the month when an upgraded version hit showrooms…The Prius, now in its third generation since its 1997 introduction, is the best-selling gas-electric hybrid in the world, racking up a cumulative 1.6 million units sold so far, according to Toyota.”


Source: Prius No. 1 in Japan sales as green interest grows
By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer
Jan 8th, 2010
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_JAPAN_TOYOTA_PRIUS_ASOL-?SITE=YOMIURI&SECTION=HOSTED_ASIA&TEMPLATE=ap_business.html

Japanese customers see Japanese manufacturers offshoring more

"Corporate Japan is voting with its feet," said Jesper Koll, now head of equity research at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in Tokyo. "… The hollowing out of Japan is being turbocharged."


Source: Manufacturing exodus overseas leaving prefecture hollowed out
By JASON CLENFIELD
Bloomberg
The Japan Times: Monday, Jan. 11, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/print/nb20100111n2.html

Japanese customers to work from home via telecommuting as companies try to reduce energy use

"(McDonald's Holdings Co. (Japan))Some 300 of the 500 employees at its Tokyo headquarters will be asked to work from home at least once a week starting July 1. The company will also encourage all headquarter workers to schedule their summer vacations for the week of Aug. 1-5. It seeks to cut electricity use at headquarters by 25%."



Source:McDonald's Japan Turns To Telecommuting To Save Power
The Nikkei
May 17, 2011.
http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110516D16JFN04.htm

Japanese customers drawn to lower priced goods - gekiyasu - the new catch phrase

“gekiyasu (extremely cheap) — from rock-bottom supermarket sales to celebrities devising ways to live on ¥100 a day — retailers are being forced to offer lower and lower prices just to stay in business.”


Source: Fast fashion is not what's ailing Japan's economy
By PHILIP BRASOR
The Japan Times: Sunday, Jan. 10, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/print/fd20100110pb.html

Japanese customers compare prices with local and imported brands for laptops - big price differences noted

"We think Japanese laptops are too expensive," said Kazunobu Seto, manager of the marketing division of Acer Japan…when comparing almost identical specifications of two laptops, ..one is domestic and the other from Taiwan, the difference in price is up to about ¥70,000, indicating "Japan brand" products come at a premium.”


Source: Makers take local approach in global markets
By KAZUAKI NAGATA
The Japan Times: Sunday, Jan. 3, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/print/nb20100103a1.html

Japanese customers spent more on weddings in 2008

“People spent an average of ¥3.31 million on wedding ceremonies and receptions in fiscal 2008, up ¥133,000 from the previous year, according to Zexy, a wedding magazine published by Recruit Co…The figure is around ¥370,000 higher than in 2005.The rise suggests that consumers are willing to spend on celebrations of major life events while curbing living expenses amid the recession.”

Source: Spending on weddings sees uptick despite recession
Kyodo News
Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20100106a6.html

Japanese customers spending less at department stores, annual sales figures drop

“According to the Japan Department Stores Association, the industry's annual sales peaked in 1991 at ¥9.7 trillion. They have fallen continuously for the last 12 years and the 2009 figure is expected to fall to less than ¥7 trillion — a level not seen in 24 years.”


Source: Department stores fight clunker image
Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2010
By KAZUAKI NAGATA
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20100106a1.html

Japanese customers look for partners through "konkatsu" marriage parties

“Forty-six percent of unmarried men and women are actively looking for marriage partners through "konkatsu"

Source: Less than half of singles looking for Mr/Ms Right
Mainichi Japan
January 3, 2010
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20100102p2a00m0na016000c.html

Japanese customers drawn to first sun rise flights of the new year

“Japanese customers want to be first to see the rise of the sun at the start of the new year. Three Japanese airlines provided flights for 1000 people.”

Source: First sunrise flights
January 2010/01/02
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20100102a5.html

Sakamoto Ryoma boom draws Japanese customers back in history

“Sakamoto Ryoma (1836-1867), a political reformer and activist in the period preceding the Meiji Restoration of 1868, is one of Japan's best-loved historical figures. This year, a big "Ryoma boom" is expected -- largely buoyed by a new TV series(NHK)… features popular singer and actor Masaharu Fukuyama as the hero. “



Source: Firms See 'Ryoma Boom' As Potential Boon For Business
Kosuke Iwano and Rintaro Tobita
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
The Nikkei Marketing Journal Jan. 4 edition

Japanese customers may get suspicious if prices fall below a certain point

“Asia University economist Shintaro Mogi, ... contradicts Yoshinoya surveys which suggest that if you lower prices beyond a certain point, customers get suspicious.”

Source: Yoshinoya's dilemma: Whether to lower prices or not
2nd January 2010, japantoday.com
http://www.japantoday.com/category/kuchikomi/view/yoshinoyas-dilemma-whether-to-lower-prices-or-not

“Japan’s domestic apparel industry is on the decline. It shrank 1.3 percent, to 4.37 trillion yen ($48 billion), in 2008, and is expected to post a steeper decline for 2009…In 2008, Japan’s clothing and apparel-related exports came to a mere $416 million, dwarfed by the $3.68 billion exported by American apparel companies, and a tiny fraction of China’s $113 billion.”


Source: In that business model, there is little financial gain for Japan.
Paris, Milan, Tokyo. Tokyo?
By HIROKO TABUCHI
January 2, 2010
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/02/business/global/02cool.html?ref=asia&pagewanted=print

Japanese customers see economy at $4.910 trillion dollars in 2008

“According to the International Monetary Fund, the U.S. led the world in 2008 with GDP of $14.441 trillion, followed by Japan at $4.910 trillion. China was right behind with $4.327 trillion. The IMF estimates that in 2010, China will surpass Japan in GDP.”

Source: Diplomatic retooling needed in face of China
By MASAMI ITO
The Japan Times: Friday, Jan. 1, 2010
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/print/nn20100101a3.html