STRUCTURAL-CHANGE IN THE JAPANESE WOOL TEXTILE-INDUSTRY - IMPLICATIONS FOR MARKETING

The Japanese wool textile industry experienced dramatic structural change in the 1970s and the 1980s. The number of firms in the industry has fallen by very large proportions. Total employment has also fallen. Japan has become a net importer or a much smaller net exporter of all types of textiles and clothing, including wool products. Imports now account for a third of domestic consumption of textiles and clothing. The degrees of import penetration are higher for natural fibres than for synthetics. Import penetration is also higher towards the finished product end of the production chain. An analysis of these changes and their origins is presented here. The analysis is relevant to the prospects for the volume and patterns of trade in raw and synthetic fibres in East Asia, Japan in particular. The paper reviews developments in the retail sector in Japan, and in spinning and weaving. It examines problems in inventory control and product development in Japan and outlines aspects of the relocation of the Japanese wool textile industry. The focus here is on developments at the retail end of the marketing system in response to shifts in the composition of demand and the feedback into the wool textile production system. The implications for the marketing of wool in East Asia are discussed.