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billion, over 140 Japanese manufacturers with factories in the UK (over 80 since the beginning of 1987) and an increasing business perception of Japan as a commercial opportunity rather than a problem. Our performance overall has been particularly good compared with most EC countries.
My aim was to help reinforce and extend the position as Japan's preferred economic partner in Europe. I emphasised that an essential part of this was for Japan to continue to improve opportunities for our businessmen in its domestic market and in particular to remove the bias in favour of the United States where it still lingers, particularly in "big ticket" aerospace
and defence purchases.
These points appeared to be well taken at meetings with the MITI Minister, the Vice Minister for Finance, the big firms represented in the Keidanren and those businessmen whom I met separately, including the top management of Toyota whom I made a point of visiting in Nagoya near their corporate headquarters.
I was able to emphasise that our economic and trade policies remained unaltered, that they were based on a determined commitment to advance open market policies both in Europe and globally, and that we looked for a like contribution from Japan. The Japanese reaffirmed similar commitments. These, and Ambassador Kitamura's positive remarks to you recently on his introductory call, suggest that our policy of friendly but frank speaking, backed by firm action, as on the question of cars made by Japanese companies in the UK, is having good results.
Toyota,
for example, particularly emphasised their intention of becoming "a real British company", exporting 70% of their production to
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