Japanese influences on industrialization in China

The role of Japan in China’s contemporary industrialization process is analyzed by studying five areas in which Japan might have been able to influence developments in China: Industrial Policy, Official Development Assistance, Transfer of Technology without Equity Participation, Foreign Direct Investment, Corporate Governance and Business Concepts. In conclusion Japan is seen to have played an important role in China’s industrialization process. This influencehas been exerted over various channels, none of which played a dominating role just by itself. The PR China did not copy the Japanese model of industrial policy but has selectively chosen certain elements and tried to integrate them in an eclectic approach of systemic transformation and industrial upgrading. By means of ODA, Plant and Technology contracts, and in the 1990s FDI, there has been a continuous transfer of capital, modern technology and know-how from Japan to China, which enabled the Chinese economy to significantly reduce the development gap to the industrialized economies. In addition Japanese style management concepts have been widely accepted by Chinese companies.