A Comparative Analysis of the
Japanese and
U.S. Economies
Spring 2002
Tuesdays 6:00 p.m.-8:50 p.m.
Room: TBA
C.V.
Starr Professor of Economics and Director
The
Center for Japan-U.S. Business and Economic Studies
Leonard
N. Stern School of Business
Office: KMC 7-190
Phone:
(212) 998 – 0750
Fax:
(212) 995 – 4219
E-mail:
rsato@stern.nyu.edu
T.A.
Carlos Gutierrez
E-mail:
cag244@nyu.edu
Office
Hours: Mondays and Wednesdays 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m., or by appointment
This course examines the Japanese economy as an application of modern macro- and micro- economics. Provides a comparative analysis of the Japanese economy, in particular, with the U.S. economy. Topics include historical perspective and modernization, postwar economic growth and technical change, industrial structure, public finance and tax system, financial liberalization, political economy of trade friction, exchange rate, and Japanese management styles.
Students
will be evaluated by a take-home test, an in-class test, a presentation and
classroom participation. Presentations will be made in April, and the in-class
test will be given on Tuesday, April 30th, the last day of class.
There will be no final examination.
The
course grade will be determined as follows:
Take-home test 25%
In-class test 30%
Presentation 25%
Classroom participation 20%
Course Outline
1. Introduction
and Overview
·
Industrialized
society
·
Japanese
economic success
·
The
increasing role of Japan in the
international economy
2. The
Japanese Economy in the 21st Century
·
Current
issues of the Japanese economy
·
Singularity
point and comparative advantages
·
The
bubble economy
·
Japan
in the 21st century: structure change or perpetual stagnation?
3. Economic
Growth
·
Factors
of economic growth
·
Competition
among companies
·
Economic
planning
·
Japan’s
growth “miracle”: why it occurred and how it came to an end
4. Fiscal
Policy
·
Tax
structure in Japan
·
Government
spending
·
Budget
deficit
5. Monetary
Policy and Financial Markets
·
Money
and prices
·
Inflation
and oil shocks
·
Finance
in Japan and in the U.S.
·
Features
of the Japanese financial markets
6. International
Trade
·
The
international economy with or without a big country
·
Changes
in industrial structure and patterns of trade
·
Strategic
trade
·
Japan-U.S.
conflicts
7. International
Finance
·
Secret
of the yen
·
Fluctuating
value of the yen
·
Role
of the yen in the international marketplace
·
Towards
a new way of exchange
8. Savings
and Investment
·
Why
is Japanese savings so high?
·
Investment
and cost of capital
·
Investment
in human capital
·
Japanese
educational system
9. Industrial
Policy and Industrial Structure
·
Increasing
and decreasing profit margins
·
Changing
picture of industrial distribution
·
Development
of the services economy
·
Japanese
industrial policy
10. Technical
Change
·
Technical
change and Japanese R&D
·
Basic
versus applied technology
·
Technology
transfer and technology game
11. Distribution
System
·
Purchasing
Power Parity
·
Why
are Japanese prices so high?
·
Transition
to large-scale retailing
12. Total
quality control and the just-in-time method of inventory control
·
Labor
unions
·
Zaibatsu versus keiretsu
·
The
turnover of the top management and the new entrepreneurial manager
1. Lectures
(9 weeks)
·
January
22 and 29
·
February
5, 12, 19 and 26
·
March
5, 8 and 26
2. Presentations
(3 1/2 weeks)
·
April
2, 9, 16 and 23 (first half of the class)
3. Review
·
April
23 (second half of the class)
4. In-class
test
·
April
30
Course
Materials
While there is a number of books that discuss
various aspects of the Japanese economy, there is no single book that covers
all of the topics examined in this course at a basic level. The following book,
however, is required
·
Sato,
R., The Chrysanthemum and the Eagle: The
Future of U.S.-Japan Relations, NYU Press, 1994.
The following materials present useful insights on
the Japanese economy. They are provided to assist you in gathering primary
research for your presentation.
1. Journals
·
Japan and the World Economy,
The Center
for Japan-U.S. Business and Economic Studies and North Holland.
·
Japanese Economic Studies, M.E. Sharp
·
Journal of the Japanese and
International Economy, Academic Press
2. Books
·
Allen,
G.C., Japanese Economy, St. Martin
Press, 1981
·
Aoki,
Masahiko, Economic Analysis of the
Japanese Firm, North Holland, 1984.
·
Blomstrom,
Magnus, Gangnes, Byron and Summer La
Croix, Japan’s New Economy, Oxford
University Press, 2001.
·
Calhoun,
Michael, The Silver Market, Japan
Society, 2001.
·
Carlile,
Lonny, Is Japan Really Changing Its
Ways?: Regulatory Reform and the Japanese Economy, Brookings Institute,
1998.
·
Elton,
Edwin J. and Martin J. Gruber, Japanese
Capital Markets: Analysis and Characteristics of Equity, Debt and Financial
Futures Markets, Harper & Row, 1990.
·
Flath,
David, The Japanese Economy, Oxford
University Press, 2001.
·
Gibney,
Frank. Unlocking the Bureaucrat’s
Kingdom: Deregulation and the Japanese Economy, Brookings Institute, 1998.
·
Green,
Michael, Terrorism: Prevention &
Preparedness, Japan Society, 2001.
·
Hayes,
Declan. Japan’s Big Bang: The
Deregulation and Revitalization of the Japanese Economy, Charles E. Tuttle
Co., 2000.
·
Hsu,
Robert C., The MIT Encyclopedia of the Japanese Economy, MIT Press, 1999.
·
Hsu,
Robert C., The MITI and the Japanese
Miracle, Stanford University Press, 1984.
·
Kosai,
Yutaka and Yoshitaro Ogino, Contemporary
Japanese Economy, M.E. Sharp 1984.
·
Krugman,
Paul (ed.), Trade with Japan,
University of Chicago Press, 1991.
·
Milhaupt,
Curtis J. Japanese Law in Context:
Readings in Society, the Economy and Politics, Harvard University Press,
2001.
·
Morgan,
James and Jeffrey Morgan, Cracking the
Japanese Market: Strategies for Success in the New Global Economy, Free Press,
2001.
·
Nakamura,
Takafusa, Lectures on Modern Japanese
Economic History: 1926-1994, LTCB International Library Foundation, 1994.
·
Nakamura,
Takafusa, The Post-War Japanese Economy (2nd.
edition), University of Tokyo Press, 1995.
·
Pepper,
Thomas, Merit E. Janow and Jimmy W. Wheller, The Competition Dealing with Japan, Praeger, 1985.
·
Pugel,
Thomas A. and Robert Hawkins (eds.), Fragile
Interdependence: Economic Issues in U.S.- Japanese Trade and Investment,
Lexington Books, 1986.
·
Saito,
Mitsuo, The Japanese Economy (Economic
Ideas Leading to the 21st Century), World Scientific Pub Co.,
2000.
·
Sato,
Ryuzo and Paul Wachtel (eds.), Trade
Friction and Economic Policy: Problems and Prospects for Japan and the United
States, Cambridge University Press, 1987.
·
Shishido,
Toshio and Ryuzo Sato (eds.), Economic
Policy and Development: New Perspective, Auburn House Publishing, 1985.
·
Suzuki,
Yoshio, The Japanese Financial System,
Oxford University Press, 1990.
·
Tabb,
William K., The Postwar Japanese System:
Cultural Economy and Economic Transformation, Oxford University Press,
1995.
·
Takatoshi,
Ito. The Japanese Economy, MIT Press,
1992.
·
Viner,
Aron, Inside Japanese Financial Markets,
Dow Jones-Irwin, 1988.
·
Whittaker,
Hugh and D.H. Whittaker, Small Firms in
the Japanese Economy, Cambridge University Press, 1999.
·
Yamada,
Makiko. Japan’s Top Management from the
Inside (Studies in the Mordern Japanese Economy), Palgrave, 1998.
·
Yoshikawa,
Hiroshi. Macroeconomics and the Japanese
Economy, Oxford University Press, 1995.
3. White
Papers, Official Statistics
·
Asia Yearbook
·
Industrial Review of Japan
·
Japan Economic Almanac
·
OECD Handbook: Japan
·
White papers on Japan