Asia after World War II

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Asia after World War II
 MacArthur and Hirohito
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The Japanese Miracle

• One of the most impressive triumphs for the
  Western liberal capitalist vision was the
  emergence of Japan as an economic powerhouse
  after World War II.
• By the middle of the 1970s, Japan had emerged as
  a politically stable civilian regime with a
  dynamic, thriving economy.
• Results were due to American military protection,
  investment, and transfers of technology.
• Example of the benefits of being incorporated
  into the First World.

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Economic Recovery

• By 1951, the U.S. had poured more than 2 billion
  into the Japanese economy.
• The Korean War led to the U.S. spending 4
  billion in Japan for supplies, equipment,
  services, and recreation facilities for American
  troops.
• This would continue with the Vietnam War.

4
Open Markets

• To facilitate recovery, the U.S. opened its
  enormous domestic market to Japanese goods.
• Cameras, watches, and television sets emerged as
  a major export.
• Initially, Japanese goods were rather primitive,
  but over time became more and more sophisticated.
• To replace the countrys physical plant, which
  had largely been destroyed, the U.S. transferred
  considerable technology to Japan.
• A greater percentage of up-to-date equipment than
  other countries.

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The Japanese Miracle

• To promote an export-drive economy, the
  government encouraged its citizens to save, not
  spend.
• At the same time, it erected import barriers that
  allowed specially targeted industries to take off
  without foreign competition.
• Already in the 1950s, Japans economy was surging
  upward at nearly 10 percent per year. Japan
  maintained that rate through the 1960s and into
  the 1970s.

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Auto Production

• The oil crisis of 1973 caused Americans to
  purchase smaller cars which Japan was ready to
  supply.
• By 1993, Japan had gained 30 percent of the U.S.
  automobile market.

• 1966 Toyota

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U.S.-Japanese Relations

• The U.S. has remained Japans biggest trading
  partner since the end of WWII.
• In 1972, the U.S. returned Okinawa to Japan but
  retained the right of American military bases.
• Continuing sources of disagreement concern the
  trade imbalance and U.S. forces stationed in
  Okinawa.

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Economic Decline in the 1990s

• By the early 1990s, Japans economy had peaked
  and it began experiencing economic difficulties
  and entered a period of recession.
• By 1994, Japan began falling behind in consumer
  electronics because of the Internet as the
  computer and consumer-electronics industries
  merged.
• The U.S. software industry surpassed Japans.

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Japan Continuing Problems

• Overcrowding
• The population of Japan was 126.5 million.
• The density per square mile in 1998 was 863
  compared to 70 plus in the U.S.
• Highest life expectancies in the world 84 for
  women and 77 for men.
• The steady increase in population size has
  created problems of overcrowding, housing
  shortages, congestion, and pollution.

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Japan Continuing Problems

• Cost of Living
• The phenomenal economic growth naturally resulted
  in a rise in the standard of living.
• Per capita national income in 1994 29,244
  U.S. 20,382
• With the growth in the economy the prices of
  goods skyrocketed.
• In 1991, prices in Tokyo were 27 higher than in
  New York City.
• Mid 1990s Gas 4.25 a gallon 13 a pound for
  average-grade beef BMW 104,000

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Decolonization in Asia

• World War II ended empires in Asia
• Between 1946 and 1957, countries fought for
  freedom
• U.S. grants independence to the Philippines in
  1946
• Great Britain leaves the Indian subcontinent in
  1947-48
• France leaves Indochina in 1954

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