Overview
2008 - 2009
In the past, the Japanese business community tended to view China and its rapidly expanding economy as a threat. However, this is now being replaced by the view that the vitality of the Chinese economy can be effectively utilized to energize Japanese firms. The economic ties between Japan and China are being strengthened and Japanese-affiliated firms are upgrading the level of their commitment to China. But this implies that Japanese-affiliated firms will become increasingly susceptible to events and changes occurring in the Chinese economy. With this in mind, Japanese-affiliated firms are becoming keenly aware of China-related risks even as they increase their business exposure to China.
The purpose of this project is to survey such current conditions in Japan-China economic relations from the perspective of foreign direct investment. First, developments in Japan-China investment will be surveyed in chronological order, followed by an analysis of Japanese foreign direct investment in China during 2007 and 2008. Next, Japan's position in China's total incoming foreign direct investment will be examined and a number of issues pertaining to foreign direct investment in China will be examined. Finally, we intend to make some projections concerning the future of Japan-China investment relations and will review some specific matters on the Chinese side that need to be understood in order to ensure smooth implementation of investment activities by Japanese-affiliated firms in China.
March 3, 2009 - July 28, 2009
