Business

Woes continue for Sony, who reported a 94% plunge in profit for the second quarter. Though sales had risen 8%, Sony spent approximately $429 million in an effort to recall some 9.6 million laptop batteries. The company’s share price dove from just over $50 per share in early May to just under $38 in early October, though it has recently fought its way back to the $42 range while trading on heavy volume. On Friday, although it was reported that a user of a Fujitsu laptop in Japan had suffered minor burns from an overheated Sony battery, Forbes weighed in with the opinion that “the worst may be past for Sony.”

A Japanese social club known as The Republic of Manufacturing has been getting press recently in both domestic and international papers, in an effort to boost the image of Japanese manufacturers. Yasuhisa Konno, a founder of the group, says that problems such as Cannon and Sony’s recalls and Toyota’s quality control issues, “aren’t about true Japanese production.”

The Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren - 日本経済団体連合会), Japan’s most powerful business lobby, is preparing to present its first-ever plans for a bilateral economic agreement with the United States. The envisioned economic partnership agreement could abolish tariffs and boost free investment, as well as lead to visa-free exchanges between the two economic powerhouses. The plan could be presented to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and relevant governement ministries as early as next month.

The New York Stock exchange and the Tokyo Stock Exchange have reportedly begun discussions on a capital tie-up between the two bourses. The TSE, which is scheduled to go public in 2009, is considering measures such as share cross-holding and the cross-listing of financial products between the two exchanges.

In a related matter, on Friday Mizuho Securities filed a lawsuit against the Tokyo Stock Exchange for some 41.5 billion yen in damages, asserting that the TSE caused huge losses when its computer system failed to process a correction to an erroneous order the brokerage placed last December.

Politics

On friday, US Ambassador Thomas Schieffer announced that Japan needs to make a decision on whether or not it can offer assisitance to the US in the case that a hostile missile is launched over Japan’s territory, even if the intended target of that missile is not Japan itself. At a speech in Tokyo, Schieffer asked:

Would [Japan] have to wait until it could be finally determined that the missile was headed for Japan, or could it fire based upon the belief that any missile fired at or above Japanese airspace was a threat to Japan?

He later commented that Japan’s response would be, “absolutely critical to the function and future of our alliance.”

On Thursday, a fishing vessel carrying twenty activists from Hong Kong briefly entered Japanese waters before being chased away by Japanese coat guard vessels that sprayed the ship with water from fire hoses. The ships’s intended destination, a group of uninhabited islands known as the Senkakus in Japan, is jointly claimed by Japan, China and Taiwan.

Japan’s parliament has begun the debate over whether or not the defense agency should be upgraded to ministry-level status. Such a move would give a “defense minister” the same powers as other cabinet ministers, including the ability to directly convene cabinet meetings and propose new legislation over major issues involving national defense.

And also on Friday, the diet approved a bill to extend the term of a special antiterrorism law authorizing support for U.S. led antiterrorism operations for another year. The law allows Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force ships to supply fuel to American and British ships in the Indian Ocean.

Society

The news broke this past week that at least 396 high schools across 41 of Japan’s prefectures have not been providing courses that are required for graduation. According to the Japan Times, “The Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Ministry has told all prefectural boards of education to report by Friday whether they have high schools in their regions that are not fulfilling curriculum requirements.” It is estimated that 70,000 students could be affected by their schools’ decision to focus on courses necessary for taking university entrance exams rather than offering the government-mandated compulsory courses that are required for graduation.

A junior high school in Gifu Prefecture is investigating the cause of yet another teenage suicide. As links to suicide and bullying in Japan’s schools seem to grow daily, on Wednesday the Education Rebuilding Council, a panel set up to advise the prime minister, held its second meeting. The council decided to set up three subcommittees, which plan to present conclusions on pressing education issues by next January.

Other reading

Finally, we have some links to interesting further reading. Akemi Nakamura of the Japan Times is working on a three part series entitled On the ‘right’ track: Abe to play hardball with soft education system. Her articles are worth taking a look at.

On Sunday, the Japan Times published its review of Shutting out the Sun: How Japan Created its Own Lost Generation, by Michael Zielenziger. This observer cannot endorse this text, yet will admit he finds the book’s topic to be of interest.

The Daily Yomiuri has a series of links and articles related to wartime responsibility that have not yet been mentioned on Trans-Pacific Radio.

The Washington Post has taken an interesting look at the development of Halloween as a festival in Japan.

Finally, on last Sunday the Japan Times ran a fascinating piece by Eric Prideaux entitled Riding with the Rightists. Prideaux climbed aboard a right-wing operated sound truck for an inside look at their operations. There is also a multimedia presentation of the right-wing soundtrucks and their activities.

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