Iran& japan: Trade & Exhibition Information

Description:

The archipelago of Japan is separated from the Asian mainland by 160km (100 miles) of sea and split into four main islands: Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku. About 70% of the country is covered by hills and mountains, a number of which are active or dormant volcanoes, including Mount Fuji, Japan's highest peak, reaching 3,776m (12,388ft).

A series of mountain ranges runs from northern Hokkaido to southern Kyushu. The Japanese Alps (the most prominent range) run in a north-south direction through central Honshu. Lowlands and plains are small and scattered, mostly lying along the coast, and composed of alluvial lowlands and diluvial uplands. The coastline is very long in relation to the land area, and has very varied features. The deeply indented bays with good natural harbours tend to be adjacent to mountainous terrain.

Population:

127.9 million (2008).

language:

Japanese is the official language. Some English is spoken in Tokyo and other large cities but is less usual in rural areas.

Climate:

Except for the Hokkaido area and the subtropical Okinawa region, the weather is mostly temperate, with four seasons. Winters are cool and sunny in the south, cold and sunny around Tokyo (which occasionally has snow), and very cold around Hokkaido, which is covered in snow for up to four months a year. Summer, between June and September, ranges from warm to very hot, while spring and autumn are generally mild throughout the country. Rain falls throughout the year but June and early July is the main rainy season. Hokkaido, however, is much drier than the Tokyo area. Rainfall is intermittent with sunshine. Typhoons are only likely to occur in September or October but rarely last more than a day.

Economy - overview:

After suffering massive destruction during WWII, Japan was the economic phenomenon of the late 20th century. The structure of the Japanese domestic economy revolves around a group of large multi-product corporations (many of which are global household names), linked in loose alliances with banks and finance houses. Agriculture accounts for just 2% of the GDP.

The model worked superbly until the early 1990s, when competition from abroad and excessive lending by the banks began to exert pressure. The extent of the problem became apparent with the 1991 property crash and, more spectacularly, the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

In the following years the economy stagnated, remaining at 0% inflation for a few years. Unemployment, a comparative novelty in a country where jobs were typically guaranteed for life, reached 5.4%.

From 2003 to 2007 the Japanese economy enjoyed its strongest recovery since WWII. However, the global economic crisis of late 2008 hit Japan hard. Unemployment is creeping up towards 5%, but, even so, Japan remains the third largest economy in the world.

Economy:

After suffering massive destruction during WWII, Japan was the economic phenomenon of the late 20th century. The structure of the Japanese domestic economy revolves around a group of large multi-product corporations (many of which are global household names), linked in loose alliances with banks and finance houses. Agriculture accounts for just 2% of the GDP.

The model worked superbly until the early 1990s, when competition from abroad and excessive lending by the banks began to exert pressure. The extent of the problem became apparent with the 1991 property crash and, more spectacularly, the 1997 Asian financial crisis.

In the following years the economy stagnated, remaining at 0% inflation for a few years. Unemployment, a comparative novelty in a country where jobs were typically guaranteed for life, reached 5.4%.

From 2003 to 2007 the Japanese economy enjoyed its strongest recovery since WWII. However, the global economic crisis of late 2008 hit Japan hard. Unemployment is creeping up towards 5%, but, even so, Japan remains the third largest economy in the world.

Industries:

among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals, textiles, processed foods

Exports:

Cars, computers, electronic devices and chemicals.

Imports:

Machinery, fuel, food, chemicals and textiles.

• Main trade partners: USA, China, Taiwan (China), Korea (Rep) and Germany.

Exchange rates:

Japanese Yen (JPY; symbol ?�). Notes are in denominations of ?�10,000, 5,000, 2,000 and 1,000. Coins are in denominations of ?�500, 100, 50, 10, 5 and 1.
http://www.worldtravelguide.net/country/131/money/Far-East-Asia/Japan.html

GDP :

US$4.9 trillion (2008).

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