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Regionalism and Rivalry

Japan and the U.S. in Pacific Asia

As Japan’s newfound economic power leads to increased political power, there is concern that Japan may be turning East Asia into a regional economic bloc to rival the U.S. and Europe. In Regionalism and Rivalry, leading economists and political scientists address this concern by looking at three central questions: Is Japan forming a trading bloc in Pacific Asia? Does Japan use foreign direct investment in Southeast Asia to achieve national goals? Does Japan possess the leadership qualities necessary for a nation assuming greater political responsibility in international affairs?

The authors contend that although intraregional trade in East Asia is growing rapidly, a trade bloc is not necessarily forming. They show that the trade increase can be explained entirely by factors independent of discriminatory trading arrangements, such as the rapid growth of East Asian economies. Other chapters look in detail at cases of Japanese direct investment in Southeast Asia and find little evidence of attempts by Japan to use the power of its multinational corporations for political purposes. A third group of papers attempt to gauge Japan’s leadership characteristics. They focus on Japan’s "technology ideology," its contributions to international public goods, international monetary cooperation, and economic liberalization in East Asia.

488 pages | 17 line drawings, 81 tables | 6 x 9 | © 1993

National Bureau of Economic Research Conference Report

Economics and Business: Economics--International and Comparative

Table of Contents

Preface
Introduction
Jeffrey A. Frankel
Miles Kahler
I. Is Pacific Asia Becoming A Regional Bloc?
1. The East Asian Trading Bloc: An Analytical History, Peter A. Petri
Comment: Stephan Haggard
2. Is Japan Creating A Yen Bloc In East Asia And The Pacific?, Jeffrey A. Frankel
Comment: Robert Z. Lawrence
3. Pricing Strategies And Trading Blocs In East Asia, Gary R. Saxonhouse
Comment: Robert Gilpin
4. Trading Blocs And The Incentives To Protect: Implications For Japan And East Asia, Kenneth A. Froot And David B. Yoffie
Comment: Marcus Noland
Comment: Jeffry A. Frieden

II. Japanese Foreign Direct Investment In East Asia
5. Japanese Foreign Investment And The Creation Of A Pacific-Asian Region, Richard F. Doner
Comment: Robert E. Lipsey
6. Japan As A Regional Power In Asia, Peter J. Katzenstein And Martin Rouse
Comment: Wing Thye Woo

III. Does Japan Have The Qualities Of Leadership?
7. How To Succeed Without Really Flying: The Japanese Aircraft Industry And Japan’s Technology Ideology, David B. Friedman And Richard J. Samuels
Comment: Gregory W. Noble
8. Foreign Aid And Burdensharing: Is Japan Free-Riding To A Co-Prosperity Sphere In Pacific Asia?, Shafiqul Islam
Comment: Stephen D. Krasner
Comment: Robert Dekle
Comment: Takashi Inoguchi
9. U.S. Political Pressure And Economic Liberalization In East Asia, Takatoshi Ito
Comment: Frances Rosenbluth
10. Domestic Politics And Regional Cooperation: The United States, Japan, And Pacific Money And Finance, Jeffry A. Frieden
Comment: Takeo Hoshi
11. National Security Aspects Of United States—Japan Economic Relations In The Pacific Asian Region, Martin Feldstein

Contributors
Author Index
Subject Index

Awards

Masayoshi Ohira Memorial Foundation: Masayoshi Ohira Memorial Prize
Won

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