Manufacturers Part 1—A recent survey conducted by Japan Rubber Weekly found that over half of respondents, or 54 percent, expect the rubber industry's performance to remain "stable" in 2016, while 23 percent believe it will be "somewhat better" or "better." Meanwhile, 21 percent responded that it will be "somewhat worse" or "worse."
New Year’s Top Interview: Okamoto Industries President Yoshiyuki Okamoto President Yoshiyuki Okamoto of Okamoto Industries Inc. (TYO:5122) said recently in an interview with Japan Rubber Weekly that increased capital spending had yielded results by producing good business performance in 2015. Of particular note, the company is unable to meet demand for interior automobile materials in North America as well as...
New Year’s Top Interview: Achilles President Mamoru Ito President Mamoru Ito of Achilles Corp. (TYO:5142) spoke recently with Japan Rubber Weekly about its business and the company’s new headquarters. He said the relocation has enabled the company to centrally coordinate and direct operations more efficiently, while Achilles plans on using the proceeds gained from the sale of the former premises...
Thanks to a booming sports lifestyle market beginning at the start of the 21st century, demand for sports shoes in Japan recovered, with sales in 2002 reaching 42 million pairs. However, from 2006 onward, there were no particularly popular categories or hit models. Amidst excess inventory and a slack market, sports shoes sales dropped to 37 million pairs in 2008...
The size of the retail shoe market in Japan (excluding slippers and sandals) is at around 1.6 trillion yen, with 400 million or so pairs being sold. This comes after a slump from the late 1990s to the early 2000s during a lengthy economic slowdown, when the market shrank to 1.49 trillion yen in 2002, a year in which over...
The number of motor vehicles produced in Japan in October 2015 was approximately 813,000, a 0.5 percent drop over the same month of the previous year and the 16th consecutive month that the figure had fallen against the previous year, according to the Japan Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (JAMA). Passenger car production was approximately 690,000 vehicles, the first increase—albeit a slight...
