Word: japanized
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...like Thai veteran Suebsak Phunsueb-considered sepak takraw's top player for the past several years-might be able to supplement that with advertisements and media work, but he's still no Beckham. At the humbler end of the scale, semipros like Susumu Teramoto, a 31-year-old from Japan, will accept salaries of approximately $200 a month, plus food and lodging, for the privilege of competing against the best in the business...
...become the world's largest carmaker, and even runner-up brands like Honda are in better shape than their struggling American counterparts. But back home, the news isn't so golden. Thanks to an aging, shrinking population and lackluster consumer spending, sales of full-size vehicles in Japan last year were the lowest since 1977. Mighty Toyota may have posted a record global profit of $18.6 billion for 2006, but its home-soil sales slumped...
...there is an unexpected bright spot. Sales of minicars-tiny, inexpensive vehicles powered by glorified motorcycle engines-rose 5.2% last year to reach 2.02 million, a record high. More than one out of every three cars sold in Japan in 2006 was a mini, or kei, making the country by far the biggest market in the world for these runty runabouts. Offering affordability-most are in the $10,000 price range-and impressive fuel economy of around 20 km per liter, Hello Kitty-cute kei could play a big role in the future of Japanese transport. "It's a good...
...Make no mistake, kei are dinky even compared with conventional subcompacts. The popular Daihatsu Move, for example, is 28% smaller on the outside than BMW's iconic Mini. Social and demographic trends in Japan-a country known for its affinity for bonsai and miniature electronics-appear to favor tiny, frugal cars. Young people are postponing or forgoing marriage and children, lessening demand for family-sized autos. For retirement-age baby boomers, minis make practical second vehicles; they are especially favored by obasans, older housewives like Yamamoto who have been the kei's most faithful customers. In Japan's less prosperous...
...With fuel prices likely to remain high and awareness of the environment growing globally, small, efficient cars are beginning to gain traction not just in Japan but all over the world. For example, DaimlerChrysler plans next year to begin selling its two-passenger Smart mini in the SUV-loving U.S. At the same time, most of the world's major automakers expect to produce low-cost subcompact cars for growing middle classes in China, India and other developing countries. Yet the market for kei is likely to remain largely restricted to Japan. That's partly because profit margins...