Word: okita
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...Japanese point out, with some justification, that the trade deficit is as much the fault of America's bad habits as the result of Japan's economic policies. Says former Foreign Minister Saburo Okita: "The Americans should take a second look at themselves. Obviously they cannot go on with runaway spending forever." The U.S. borrowing-and-spending binge, which involves both Government and consumers, has boosted the tide of imports to the U.S. The Japanese also complain that the U.S. has leadership problems of its own. Washington has been sending out conflicting signals because trade policy is shaped and shared...
...Okita believes that Japan nonetheless will double its growth rate, to 5%, by the end of 1983-but only with an upturn in the sluggish Western economies. Said Okita: "Japan cannot remain an island of prosperity in an ocean of recession...
Other members of TIME'S board suggested that the Japanese government should respond to the export shortfall by increasing spending to stimulate domestic consumption. Okita countered that such a course would be difficult because the government is already running a revenue deficit equal to 30% of its expenditures...
Late Entry into the Growth Race. "All of us," said Okita, "are latecomers to development, so we were able to use economic models from North America and Europe." In addition, contended Narongchai, the Asians saw how multinational corporations had exploited other developing areas like Latin America. Said he: "By the time the Asian governments launched their development programs, they were intelligent enough to manage their own resources and not to allow the multinationals to rape their economies...
Hardworking Populations. The people of many Asian countries seem to share an ethos of self-sacrifice and dedication to the common good. Said Okita: "The work ethic and discipline are stronger in this region than in Europe or North America." Fierce competition is often the motivation. Most Asian nations have young, burgeoning populations: about 40% of the people are under 15, which creates enormous pressure for breadwinners to produce...