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by taking out of competition so many of the manufacturers of other nations, gave Japan a great opportunity, which she seized in a remarkable manner. In ten years her industry increased in total production from £140 million to nearly £700 million. The biggest percentage increase was in the metal and machinery trades, which multiplied almost sevenfold in this period to a total of £105 million.
Meanwhile the total industrial population had increased from about about 1 million to 2 million factory employees and registered manufacturing companies from roughly 5,000 to 12,000. In addition, a large number of small private factories came into existence, prepared to make anything or everything.
Such rapid growth naturally held many dangers, and the metal industry in particular has had a chequered career. Since the war it has been assailed by recurrent periods of crisis and depression, which have weeded out many weaklings or forced them into the hands of stronger rivals. On the whole, however, production has increased and was in particular developed strongly by the great earthquake reconstruction programme, and lately by the heavy ship- building programme. Our visit to Japan took place in a period of world-wide depression and slack markets, and the position of the Japanese iron and steel and machinery industries was so unsatis- factory as to make the future very obscure.
IRON ORE.
23. The ideal of making Japan self supporting in the metal industries, is subject to a big handicap in regard to raw materials. In any analysis it is impossible to consider Japan alone without including her colonies and the Japanese sphere of influence in Manchuria. The requirements of this inclusive territory, for a normal output, are about 3 million tons a year of iron ore, of which nearly 2 million tons are derived from outside Japanese jurisdiction. The figures showing the sources of Japan's supplies of iron ore are :-
Japan
Korea
Manchuria
China
Malaya
Tons.
150,000
550,000
650,000
950,000
950,000
The Chinese supply is already restricted by civil unrest in China and must be regarded as liable to possible interruption in the future, for China may need her own ores.
PIG IRON.
24. Japan's normal production at present of pig iron is about 1,400,000 tons, but she needs to import about 650,000 tons in addition, 400,000 tons coming from British India. Plans are in progress for a considerable increase in the production of pig iron,
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both in South Manchuria and Japan. They are, however, moving very slowly though a probable production of about 2 million tons is in sight, but at a price which is barely competitive. Japanese pig iron works were established during the War, when any and every possible type of plant was purchased at very high cost. To-day, many of these works are in difficulties. Under the plea of patriotism and the campaign to support home products, the pig iron makers, through their syndicate, have demanded from the Japanese Government, and are likely to succeed in obtaining, the following assistance :-
(1) An increase of the import duty from the present figure of Yen 1.70 per ton to Yen 7 per ton.
(2) The continuation of the bounty they receive, viz:
Yen 3 per ton where pig iron is manufactured and sold for cast- ings, etc., to outside works;
Yen 5 per ton where pig iron is produced and sold to other works for converting into steel;
Yen 6 per ton where pig iron is produced and used in the same works for conversion into steel.
It should be noted that the iron industry in Japan is free from income and business profit taxes. The present duty and bounty alone amount to about 20 per cent. protection on the selling price. The proposed increase of duty and the existing bounty system are clearly expensive methods of supporting the industry. Further, the shutting out of imported supplies can only be made good by a much greater import of iron ore, manganese, etc., coking coal, and scrap iron. Nevertheless, the demands of the pig iron syndi- cate are being vigorously pressed. A campaign against Indian pig iron is also being launched by the Japanese pig iron industry under the anti-dumping clause of the Japanese tariff, which provides that:-
"When important industries in Japan are threatened by the im- portation of unreasonably cheap articles or the sale of imported articles at unreasonably low prices, the Government may, under the regula- tions provided by Imperial Ordinance, specify such articles after sub- mitting the matter to investigation by the Unreasonably Cheap Sale Investigation Committee,' and impose upon them during a fixed period of time duties not exceeding in amount their proper prices, in addition to the duties provided for in the annexed tariff."
STEEL.
certain
25. Japan has built up a large steel industry producing more or less successfully almost every description of steel. Her present productive capacity is nearly 2 million tons, of which the largest items are steel bars (31 per cent.), steel sheets and plates (28 per cent.), steel rails (14 per cent.), and steel shapes (13 per cent.). In addition to this production, Japan has to import nearly 1 million tons of steel products, of which 80 per cent. are milled products, chiefly plates and sheets, shapes, and wire rods.
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