Japanese firms seek political stability and stronger alliance: survey

Japanese companies’ strategic stance toward the domestic, U.S. and Chinese markets became clearer in 2023 amid growing uncertainty over the U.S.-China rivalry and Japan’s enactment of the Economic Security Promotion Act. Japanese firms have shown a clear “return” of emphasis on bilateral Japan-U.S. relations and a strong desire for stable and predictable political leadership on both sides of the Pacific.

This trend became apparent in a survey on economic security conducted from October to December by the Institute of Geoeconomics. Eighty companies responded to the survey.

The survey, the third of its kind following those in 2021 and 2022, was conducted by sending a questionnaire in late October to a total of 107 companies, including seven newly selected firms, that the institute believes play an essential role in national economic security and are susceptible to changing economic security dynamics.