Since Japan discharged nuclear wastewater, many netizens at home and abroad have spontaneously boycotted Japan's products, and the mainland has also issued a ban on the import of Japan's seafood.
These moves are not without impact on Japan.
On August 31, 2023, the analysis agency "Daiwa General Research Institute", a subsidiary of Japan's Daiwa Securities Group, released a report saying that Japan's nuclear wastewater has hindered Japan's aquatic product exports and reduced the willingness to travel abroad to Japan, which will directly reduce Japan's GDP by 1.2 trillion yen, equivalent to 59.8 billion yuan.
Seeing this data, many netizens believe that if such a situation is to be followed, Japan's economy will definitely be hit hard, and some people naively say that Japan will collapse.
But in fact, although the mainland's boycott has had a certain impact on Japan's economy, it is still impossible to shake Japan's status as an economic power.
The root cause is like a popular saying on the Internet: you think you can escape Japan products, but in fact they have 100 ways to sell you, and ordinary people can't prevent it.
How terrifying is Japan's economic layout?
First of all, Japan's products are not limited to one way of selling, and they can be flexible and facilitate transactions.
To put it bluntly, it doesn't matter if you don't buy Japan products, they will sell you another way.
For example, Internet influencer Lu Kewen's studio once released information that a Japan aquatic company originally planned to export 20,000 anchovies to the mainland, but because of the nuclear wastewater incident, China banned the import of Japan's seafood, and this plan was shelved.
What should we do if the channel for Chinese transactions is blocked? Can't these 20,000 anchovies be sold in Chinese mainland?
No, the company has taken a different path, planning to export to Taiwan, and then resell from Taiwan to the mainland.
This news is not groundless, according to the Taiwan media Taiwan Strait Net, relevant newspapers also admitted that the anchovy company does have this plan.
Of course, we do not know whether the last 20,000 anchovies were sold to Taiwan, and since the mainland has banned the import of Japan aquatic products, it will not only strictly control the mainland customs, but also strictly check the Japanese products sold in Taiwan to the mainland, and will not give illegal enterprises an opportunity.
However, what is certain from this incident is that the Japan people follow the principle of doing business on one road and starting another.
You think you've escaped Japan's products, and maybe he sells them to you in a different way, and you won't find out at all.
This is Japan's terrifying economic layout, flexible structure, can achieve flexibility under almost any change, but this is not the main thing, the most critical point is that Japan's products have long penetrated into all aspects of life, many have become indispensable.
Once upon a time, when people thought of Japan products, they would think of craftsmanship, which made many people firmly believe in the quality of Japan products, and the sales of Japanese products in the mainland also rose for a time.
Although with the continuous development of the Internet, we continue to disenchant many products of Japanese companies, but to be honest, in many industries, Japan products still occupy a leading position.
Over the past 20 years, Japan has achieved technological leadership in almost all important industries such as liquid crystals, photovoltaics, semiconductors, mobile phones, and electric vehicles.
Take the engine as an example, from 2010 ~ 2023, Japan has applied for more than 73,248 patents on engines, which is 50 years ahead of the mainland.
Today, the mainland's excavator exports rank first in the world, but unfortunately, almost all excavators use Japan engines, and some people even laugh that if any excavator does not use Japan engines, then it is estimated that no one will buy it.
As another example, after Japan discharged nuclear wastewater, many families spontaneously boycotted Japan products, and even diapers stopped buying Japanese brands.
We thought that this way could avoid Japan products, but if we look at the product ingredient list, we will find that the domestic diapers we buy are also inseparable from Japan cores.
Most of the cores used in diapers on the market now come from four companies, namely Sumitomo Chemical of Japan, Sanya Fine Chemical, Coal Touch Chemical and BASF of Germany, the most widely used of which is Sumitomo Chemical of Japan, accounting for 52% of the market.
The core of Japan diapers almost dominates the diaper market, and in this case, it is even more difficult to find a diaper that does not contain Japan core.
That's why we say that even if you don't buy Japan products, you may not be able to hide from Japan's economic layout.
These two easy-to-understand examples illustrate the position of Japan's industry in the world.
As an industrial country with relatively complete technology and production processes, Japan's products have been almost all over the world, and it is even more difficult to replace them, which is why Japan's overseas income has risen for a time.
In 2001, Japan's income from overseas assets was equivalent to 1.6% of Japan's GDP, and in 2015, it was equivalent to 4% of Japan's GDP.
According to official data released by the Ministry of Finance of Japan on May 27, 2020, Japan's overseas net assets reached 411 trillion yen in 2021, an increase of 15.8% from 2020.
The horror of Japan's economic layout lies in the fact that, first, they can flexibly change their strategies to export products, and second, many of their ace products are of excellent quality and have an irreplaceable position.
It is difficult to completely avoid Japan products in your life.
However, this does not mean that Japan's products have reached an irresistible point, since Japan's nuclear wastewater has been discharged into the sea, mainland netizens' willingness to travel to Japan or buy Japan products has declined significantly, no matter how much impact it can bring to Japan's economy, but at least it shows our attitude towards nuclear wastewater.
And as the mainland economy continues to grow, many of Japan's leading products are also declining.
In the past, Japanese cars dominated the market, but Chinese cars were torn apart, but now, China's new energy market has sprung up, and the sales of Japanese brands continue to decline.
In 2024, GAC Toyota's sales will decline by 25.8% year-on-year. FAW Toyota fell 11.82% year-on-year. Guangqi Honda slipped 28.28 percent.
The sales of Japanese cars have been cold for many years, and in contrast, the mainland's new energy vehicles increased by 32.1% year-on-year, with a market share of 35.2%.
The decline of Japanese cars indicates that the myth once created by Japan products will gradually be shattered, and even if Japan has 100 ways to sell Japan products to the mainland, it will not be able to resist the rise of Chinese brands.
In the future, Chinese brands will further develop and grow, and whether the status of Japan brands is in jeopardy at that time is a question they should consider.
Resources
[1] Shangguan News "Japan Government Panics? The impact of the discharge of nuclear-contaminated water into the sea on Japan economy has been revealed", 20230908
[2] Phoenix.com Finance "Kill Crazy! This time, Chinese companies have penetrated the "backyard" of the Japan auto industry" 20240517
[3] China Economic Net, "The "Four Little Flowers" Continued to Decline in the First Half of the Year, Can Japanese Cars Bottom Out and Rebound" 20240712