Weekly Bulletin For Japan Marketing Manager
This is the weekly report for the Japan marketer from July 30th to August 6th.
Businesses in Japan have posted huge profits in the first half of the year and some such as Rakuten Inc. have been smiling all the way to the banks due to increased business opportunities, as well as, increased sales of their products. Most of the success is attributed to elevated online business deals which ensure that consumers from countries other than Japan are able to access the same products as their as their Japanese counterparts. This has led to increased involvement of other firms to invest in online banking which is proving to be quite a fast one in the product and service industry (Kyodo News, 2010).
Meanwhile the Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan has mentioned severally the government’s intentions of increasing the consumption tax in the country. This has been attributed to making the Japanese government self-sufficient such that the citizens will be charged more on consumables to ensure that the 10% intended increase in income is attained. Much criticism has been portrayed by this move with more Japanese blaming the wasteful nature of the government on the hitch while others think that a 10% increase in consumable tax will not yield much income hence it should be made higher. Thus the Japanese are focusing on spending more in terms of consumable tax to boost the governments’ kitty (Jones, 2010).
Apple Japan Inc. has been on the receiving end of the Japanese government after older versions of iPod nano music players caught fire when charging and some of them overheated to an extent of hurting the user. Consequently, the government has asked Apple Japan Inc. to recall all the faulty gadgets totaling 34. The company has been mum on the issue and minimal response has been received from the company despite allegations that the firm had failed to report the fault iPods when the first incidence was reported in 2007. The recall of the gadgets will cost the giant manufacture quite a lot in terms of public image and compensation (Kyodo News, 2010).
In the same week, the motor vehicle manufacturer Toyota has announced a huge sales margin for its best-selling brand “Prius.” This comes in the wake of the recent recall of vehicles from the firm and despite the fact that over 2.68 millions of different hybrids have been sold in various countries around the world, Japan has been fundamental in achieving this goal as over one million were bought y Japanese customers. The figures presented by the car manufactures showed a considerable degree of recovery from the hitch, as well as, recovery from the global financial crisis (Tokyo news, 2010).
Consequently, the bank lending balance has gone down by 2.1% in July such that investors have been encouraged to borrow so that that they can engage in creating a more boisterous economy. This move was aimed at encouraging locals to invest in self-employment, as well as, reducing the unemployment level which has accelerated considerably over the years (Kyodo News, 2010).
References
Kyodo News (2010), Rakuten profit up 21% as mall, travel biz thrives. Retrieved on August 6, 2010 from: The Japan Times
Jones D. (2010), Japanese Prime Minister speaks of consumable tax increase. Retrieved on August 6, 2010 from: The Nikkei Weekly
Tokyo news (2010), Toyota Prius tops Japan car sales for 15 months. Retrieved on August 6, 2010 from: The Mainichi Daily News.
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