Press translations [Japan]. Economic Series 0006, 1945-11-13.

Summary:

Seed-planting in SAITAMA-KEN is almost completed. The acreage to be planted has increased by 10,800 CHOBU (2.45 acres) over last year to a total of 74,600 CHOBU. This brings about the danger of late planting. In studying last year's late planting there was much more among small farmers. Since this was secondary in nature, the effect on this livelihood was not very great. As a result the supervisor had a "do as you please" attitude. These small farmers on farms of less than one TAN (245 acre) number 23,338 out of a total of 158,523 families producing wheat and barley.

Farmers with less than five TAN number 81,455 families. These farmers form the backbone of the SAITAMA-KEN wheat and barley growers. SAITAMA-KEN is aiming at efficient wheat and barley farming, especially for the small farmers.

Summary:

It is expected that miscellaneous industries will be reconstructed. OSAKA played an important role in this group before the war, so its post-war activity must be given much attention. A meeting on the reconstruction of miscellaneous industries was held in the OSAKA Chamber of Commerce and Industry Hall several days ago. At the meeting a few moot points, such as the situation before the war; the situation in war-time; the current productive capacity, equipment and raw materials; the prospect for the future and demands of the makers, were submitted and concrete plans were set forth.

The resulting opinions are as follows:

Glass Products

The Production amounted to 3,000,000 yen in war-time with 90 per cent for munitions and 10 per cent for general use. The present capacity has been decreased by 50 per cent. It is expected that the need for raw materials, glass scraps, coal and soda will become urgent and that labor, which was 30 per cent Korean, will be short. It is demanded that prices be revised, factories for black-markets abolished, and special equipment made for a complete test of quality and perfect packing.

ECONOMIC SERIES: 6 (Continued)

ITEM 2 (Continued)

Miscellaneous Commodities of Glass

Artificial-pearl-making, or glass-ornament-making factories did not suffer from air raids. This industry will be easy to reconstruct with the receipt of materials, pigments, fuel, and lacquers. The NIPPON Special Glass Ball Industry Company now has capacity for making 400,000 to 500,000 balls monthly and is expected to exceed its pre-war capacity.

Thermos bottles and Lamps

The center of thermos bottle-making before the war was in OSAKA which suffered heavy air raid damage. Consequently, this industry must be suspended for some time. The re-establishment of this industry depends on that of the glass industry. Since exportation of lamps was forbidden in war-time, all makers changed over or abandoned their works. This group has no stock or equipment. Its re-opening is, first of all, dependent upon the reconstruction of productive equipment. It is hoped that a control-system, will be required to prevent cheap production and cheaper sales.

Hosiery Goods

The production of hosiery goods was primerily in OSAKA, and secondarily in NAGOYA and TOKYO before the outbreak of war. In war-time sin œ exportation of these commodities was forbidden, and since the number of enterprises decreased, plus the fact that twenty or thirty per cent of the equipment in OSAKA suffered from air raids, the capacity has been greatly decreased. But the efforts of manufacturers will offer a partial solution to present conditions by next spring.

Brushes

In war-time, the yearly production of brushes was estimated at 6,000,000 yen, and amounts to the value of 4,000,000 to 6,000,000 yen were exported to countries in ASIA. The chief material is pig bristles which were easily obtained from CHINA and MANCHURIA, but at present production is suspended due to many hazards, difficulties of importation and transportation of the material, limitation of wages, and the scarcity of foodstuffs. It may be expected that a large quantity of brushes will be exported to the Allied Powers as war reparations.

Toys

In war-time, especially in 1944 as compared to the year in which war broke out 20 per cent production was maintained but it is not clear what production has been this year. At present equipment has been decreased to 20 per cent. However, as this remaining equipment is scattered, so far as labor is concerned, the capacity can be estimated as 15 per cent. Independent of paper or cloth toys which are simple to manufacture, the metalic toy industry cannot hope to exceed 40 per cent production even with labor and materials being easily obtainable.

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ECONOMIC SERIES 6 (Continued)

ITEM 2 (Continued)

Bicycles

Our country had a yearly productive capacity of about 3,600,000 finished bicycles and three times that in sectional goods before the war. Of this OSAKA produced 45 per cent. The main part of the bicycles produced was exported from OSAKA and amounted to 20,000,000 yen. This OSAKA industry suffered little damage from air raids, and is easy to convert from the munitions industry, consequently the situation is good, out the factories have no stock of materials. Due to this shortage we cannot expect mass production of bicycles. it is now planned to ration about 6000 yen of steel for bicycle production.

Blades

Before the war, kitchen knives and tailor's shears were produced in OSAKA and SAKAI, carpenter's instruments and farmer's sickles in HYOGO, and pocket and other knives in GIFU. There was, as a result, great capacity for the exportation of all kinds of blades. The equipment is easily reconverted but the manufacturers feel especially the need for secondary materials, especially ingot-steel.

Extracts:

During two months following the end of hostilities the causes of our defeat in the Greater East Asia war are being probed and clarified in every sphere of activity. It has already been pointed out that this war was a prolonged naval engagement as well as a struggle for supremacy in maintaining lines of communication and that we were absolutely beaten as a maritime power. In spite of the meager 6,380,000 tons we had before the war we waged a war against Allied powers led by Anglo-American forces which was of course, a reckless and desperate gamble from the beginning. KANAKURA, the president of the board of directors of the Marine Traffic Association is one of those who early predicted our defeat. Our total tonnage decreased more heavily toward the end of war, and on 1 September it reached the new low of about 649,000 tons, representing 368 ships. This figure is about one tenth of the tonnage we had at the outbreak of the war.

The Japanese people, however, entertained some hope when SHIMADA, then Navy Minister, announced to the Diet that the shipbuilding figures for 1943 were double those of the previous year, and these (1943) figures would again be doubled in 1944. But the figures for tonnage lost were far higher than the figures for those newly built, culminating in March 1944 to a total of 50,059,100 tons. What the Japanese government and shipbuilders adhered to were only approximate figures which were of no real use. Twelve hundred ninety three (1,293) ships representing 3,933,200 gross tons were built during the war, and 3,900 were lost, representing roughly 8,830,000 gross tons causing a balance in our disfavor of 1,836 ships representing 4,857,000 gross tons.

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ECONOMIC SERIES: 6 (Continued)

ITEM 3 (Continued)

The shipbuilding record attained in 1943, of 1,120,000 gross tons was the highest figure we had ever reached, but in 1944 this figure increased to 1,580,000 gross tons mainly through applying refabrication methods. This new figure, however, was equal to only a month's production in the United States.

Of 3,129 ships representing 8,830,000 gross tons lost during the war, 1,750 ships (4,871,000 gross tons) were sunk by submarines, 876 ships (272,000 gross tons) by enemy planes and 239 ships (513,000 gross tons) struck mines. A total of 264 ships (718,000 gross tons) were shipwrecked.

Full translation:

It is reported that liquid fuel in JAPAN is so scarce that at present only 20 per cent of the demand within the country can be met, and that the authorities have asked permission of the Allied Powers to import 120,000 tons. The amount of petroleum produced in this country is very small, and it has been impossible to make up the shortage with the additional amounts already being imported from the UNITED STATES and SOUTH AMERICA, or with artificial petroleum from MANCHURIA. After the military seizure of oil wells in the South Sea Island, it was found that materials and production facilities were lacking to produce oil within the short time necessary, so oil-well-towers and oil pipes, etc. hitherto in use in the home islands were sent to these southern districts in a hurry; then our lines of communication were cut, and all was in vain. Our situation is like that of a prodigal son who has been leading a life of debauchery out is now obliged to go back to his home. We can now rely upon nothing out our own production here at home. Our oil-digging apoaratus and specialists have been left in distant overseas islands and now we bitterly regret this mistaken policy!

Production of alcohol from potatoes was next encouraged. At most one drum of alcohol could be extracted from the sweet potatoes produced on a 1 TAN (about [illegible]acre) piece of land. This amount of fuel was sufficient to keep a fighting plane in the air for an hour. Next, an attempt was made to get oil by distillation of pine roots, which were dug up and collected from all over the country; yet it could hardly be utilized in place of fuel during the war.

Recently, our foreign and military policies were based upon the illusion that the more existence of material resources necessarily constitute direct economic or military value. This in part accounts for our many miscalculations since the Manchurian Incident. We had been playing an endless purchasing game and now that the war has ended, stand quite at a loss; these, unfortunately, are the cold facts. Because we lacked politicians who were a little more far-sighted, or because these few politicians, if any, were utterly silent, we must now experience the bitter taste of disillusionment. "For one thing is also for everything", goes a Japanese proverb. We are not only talking about oil!

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ECONOMIC SERIES: 6 (Continued)

Extracts:

Coal production has suddenly dropped because of wanton mining during the war and strikes of Chinese and Korean miners after the war.

There is apt to be urgent demands for coal, and an increase in coal production has become a serious problem of the whole nation.

For instance, -coal demand in the first year after the war is estimated at 30,250,000 metric tons. Coal demand in the second year is estimated at 36,617,000 metric tons, and coal demand in the third year is estimated at 46,970,000 metric tons. But, considering this increment, the coal production at the present time, is not sufficient to supply Coal demands in the first year, which is equal to about 70 per cent of the quantity consumed in 1935. However, the fulfillment of the demand for the first post-war year may be impossible.

Ful1 translation:

Alone with the abolition of ration system regulations, the mine operators have been holding a. conference at the Ore Distributing Company since the end of October regarding betterment of technical facilities for production of tungsten and molybdenum ores, greater efficiency, regulation of supply and prices. At the same time discussions were being held to establish a new organization to bring about better relationship among the mine operators.

Finally on the fifth, the establishing of the Molybdenum Mine Council and Tungsten Mine Council had materialized. Its laws and regulations and details were passed, as well as the selection of the directing mines. However both councils will temporarily be combined and begin functioning as Tungsten and Molybdenum Mine Council (temporary name).

Directing mines is as follows:

Tungsten Mine Council:

KURIMURA Mining, (director).

MITSUBISHI Mining.

KAGATA Mine.

Molybdenum Mine Council:

MITSUBISHI Mining, (director).

HOKUTO Mine.

NORTHERN JAPAN Mining.

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ECONOMICS SERIES: 6 (Continued)

Summary:

Spokesmen of the Finance Ministry, NIPPON SHOKEN. Company (JAPAN Securities Co), and stockbrokers held a. round table conference at 1400 yesterday, to discuss the current problems with regard to re-opening the stock market.

The opening address made by IZAKA, the president of NIPPON Securities Company, is summarized as follows: We have so many current issues to be handled, such as compensation for war time industries, measures to he taken for jobless, and homeless people, that we should refrain from reopening the market for some time. KUBO, the head of the Finance Department, of the Finance Ministry, spoke to the same effect while, KINCSHITA, the president of the board of directors of the NIPPON Securities Company spoke in favor of earlier reopening of the market. He pointed out the fact that out of 400,000 shares received by four leading brokers for trading most were selling orders for those stocks somehow related to war industry. Buying orders would outnumber selling orders if peace time stocks were dealt with in the market.

At the conference aiming at the foundation of the Federation of National Stockdealers Associations held on 6 November, the managing directors of associations passed the resolution to the following effect: The associations of TOKYO, OSAKA, KYOTO, KOBE, NAGOYA, will act as committees of the Federation, while TOKYO which is the headquarters of the organization and OSAKA associations represent the whole association in external negotiations as standing committees. A general meeting will be held once annually.

Full translation:

Import of foodstuffs, salt, cotton and other materials, as well as production of commodities to be exported for exchange is one of one problems facing us for stabilization of the peoples' livelihood. Establishment of a central organization to provide for the opening of foreign trace is desired by all quarters.

Considering the real aspects of future foreign trade and the present official organizations, as well as the opinion of the Economic Ministers' conference, the government has decided unofficially to set up the Foreign Trade Committee (BOEKI-I-IN-KAI) in the Cabinet or in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. The committee will project foreign trade plans and will take leadership and inspector-ship over the traders as the only official body. The official decision on its establishment will soon be made in the Cabinet Council.

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ECONOMIC SERIES: 6 (Continued)

ITEM 8 (Continued)

The organization will be more official than an ordinary committee and might be called Bureau of Foreign Trace (BOEKI-KYOKU). A leading civilian will be appointed to the chairmanship and such officials as deemed worthy by the director of the office, as well as experts from trade circles, will be appointed as members. Mr. KANO, Hisao director of the Specie Bank (now in PEKING) is a strong candidate for the post of chairman.

Full translation:

The Public Relations Officer of the MacARTHUR Headquarters stated on 6 November that representatives of private companies and other organizations will not be permitted to enter JAPAN by the Allied General Headquarters because of restricted living conditions. Excepted from the restriction are persons whose activities in JAPAN contribute to the fulfilment of the military occupation.

General Headquarters issued orders to the commanders of the 6th and 8th Armies to the effect that when outsiders ask the commanders for permission to enter JAPAN or make some inquiries about their private interests in JAPAN, they will route the inquiries through Genera1 Headquarters.

The present draft was made in view of recent frequent inquiries or demands by private companies of the Allied Powers' concerning their entry into JAPAN or information about JAPAN.

Any requests for information regarding private interests in JAPAN should be made to the War Department in Washington.

DISTRIBUTION "X"

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