Economy - overview:
In the years following World War II, government-industry cooperation, a strong work ethic, mastery of high technology, and a comparatively small defense allocation (1% of GDP) helped Japan develop a technologically advanced economy. Two notable characteristics of the post-war economy were the close interlocking structures of manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors, known as keiretsu, and the guarantee of lifetime employment for a substantial portion of the urban labor force. Both features are now eroding under the dual pressures of global competition and domestic demographic change. Japan's industrial sector is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and fuels. A tiny agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected, with crop yields among the highest in the world. Usually self sufficient in rice, Japan imports about 60% of its food on a caloric basis. Japan maintains one of the world's largest fishing fleets and accounts for nearly 15% of the global catch. For three decades, overall real economic growth had been spectacular - a 10% average in the 1960s, a 5% average in the 1970s, and a 4% average in the 1980s. Growth slowed markedly in the 1990s, averaging just 1.7%, largely because of the after effects of inefficient investment and an asset price bubble in the late 1980s that required a protracted period of time for firms to reduce excess debt, capital, and labor. The Japanese financial sector was not heavily exposed to sub-prime mortgages or their derivative instruments and weathered the initial effect of the recent global credit crunch, but a sharp downturn in business investment and global demand for Japan's exports in late 2008 pushed Japan further into recession. Government stimulus spending helped the economy recover in late 2009 and 2010, but Tokyo is warning that GDP growth will slow in 2011. Prime Minister Kan's government has proposed opening the agricultural and services sectors to greater foreign competition and boosting exports through free-trade agreements, but debate continues on restructuring the economy and funding new stimulus programs in the face of a tight fiscal situation. Japan's huge government debt, which is approaching 200 percent of GDP, persistent deflation, and an aging and shrinking population are major complications for the economy.
GDP (purchasing power parity): GDP (official exchange rate): GDP - real growth rate: GDP - per capita (PPP): GDP - composition by sector: Labor force: Labor force - by occupation: Unemployment rate: Population below poverty line: Household income or consumption by percentage share: Distribution of family income - Gini index: Investment (gross fixed): Budget: Public debt: Inflation rate (consumer prices): Central bank discount rate: Commercial bank prime lending rate: Stock of narrow money: Stock of broad money: Stock of domestic credit: Market value of publicly traded shares: Agriculture - products: Industries: Industrial production growth rate: Electricity - production: Electricity - consumption: Electricity - exports: Electricity - imports: Oil - production: Oil - consumption: Oil - exports: Oil - imports: Oil - proved reserves: Natural gas - production: Natural gas - consumption: Natural gas - exports: Natural gas - imports: Natural gas - proved reserves: Current account balance: Exports: Exports - commodities: Exports - partners: Imports: Imports - commodities: Imports - partners: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: Debt - external: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: Exchange rates:
NOTE: The information regarding Japan on this page is re-published from the 2011 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Japan Economy 2011 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Japan Economy 2011 should be addressed to the CIA.
$4.338 trillion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
[see also: GDP (purchasing power parity) country ranks ]
$5.391 trillion (2009 est.)
[see also: GDP (official exchange rate) country ranks ]
3% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 125
[see also: GDP - real growth rate country ranks ]
$34,200 (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 39
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
[see also: GDP - per capita country ranks ]
agriculture: 1.5%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
22.8%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - industry country ranks ]
services:
75.7% (2009 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - services country ranks ]
65.64 million (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 9
[see also: Labor force country ranks ]
agriculture: 4%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
28%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - industry country ranks ]
services:
68% (2009 est.)
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - services country ranks ]
5.2% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 49
[see also: Unemployment rate country ranks ]
NA%
[see also: Population below poverty line country ranks ]
lowest 10%: 4.8%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10% country ranks ]
highest 10%:
21.7% (1993)
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - highest 10% country ranks ]
38.1 (2002)
country comparison to the world: 74
[see also: Distribution of family income - Gini index country ranks ]
20.3% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 83
[see also: Investment (gross fixed) country ranks ]
revenues: $1.839 trillion
[see also: Budget - revenues country ranks ]
expenditures:
$2.252 trillion (2009 est.)
[see also: Budget - expenditures country ranks ]
196.4% of GDP (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 2
[see also: Public debt country ranks ]
-0.9% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7
[see also: Inflation rate (consumer prices) country ranks ]
0.3% (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 139
[see also: Central bank discount rate country ranks ]
1.72% (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 156
[see also: Commercial bank prime lending rate country ranks ]
$5.541 trillion (31 December 2010 est)
[see also: Stock of narrow money country ranks ]
$18.3 trillion (31 December 2009)
[see also: Stock of broad money country ranks ]
$16.39 trillion (31 December 2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 3
[see also: Stock of domestic credit country ranks ]
$3.378 trillion (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 3
[see also: Market value of publicly traded shares country ranks ]
rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish
among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals, textiles, processed foods
7.5% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
[see also: Industrial production growth rate country ranks ]
957.9 billion kWh (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
[see also: Electricity - production country ranks ]
925.5 billion kWh (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
[see also: Electricity - consumption country ranks ]
0 kWh (2008 est.)
[see also: Electricity - exports country ranks ]
0 kWh (2008 est.)
[see also: Electricity - imports country ranks ]
132,700 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 49
[see also: Oil - production country ranks ]
4.363 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
[see also: Oil - consumption country ranks ]
380,900 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 34
[see also: Oil - exports country ranks ]
5.033 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 3
[see also: Oil - imports country ranks ]
44.12 million bbl (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 79
[see also: Oil - proved reserves country ranks ]
3.539 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 50
[see also: Natural gas - production country ranks ]
94.67 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 6
[see also: Natural gas - consumption country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 84
[see also: Natural gas - exports country ranks ]
90.29 billion cu m (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 3
[see also: Natural gas - imports country ranks ]
20.9 billion cu m (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 76
[see also: Natural gas - proved reserves country ranks ]
$182.3 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 2
[see also: Current account balance country ranks ]
$735.8 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 5
[see also: Exports country ranks ]
transport equipment, motor vehicles, semiconductors, electrical machinery, chemicals
China 18.88%, US 16.42%, South Korea 8.13%, Taiwan 6.27%, Hong Kong 5.49% (2009)
$636.8 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 5
[see also: Imports country ranks ]
machinery and equipment, fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, raw materials
China 22.2%, US 10.96%, Australia 6.29%, Saudi Arabia 5.29%, UAE 4.12%, South Korea 3.98%, Indonesia 3.95% (2009)
$NA (31 December 2010 est.)
[see also: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold country ranks ]
$2.246 trillion (30 June 2010)
country comparison to the world: 6
[see also: Debt - external country ranks ]
$161.4 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 24
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home country ranks ]
$831.1 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad country ranks ]
yen (JPY) per US dollar - 88.67 (2010), 93.57 (2009), 103.58 (2008), 117.99 (2007), 116.18 (2006)
This page was last modified 09-Feb-11