Hollowing Out and the Decline of Japan's Subcontractor System.

The article focuses on the decline of Japanese subcontractor system. According to the Japan Research Institute, about 300,000 jobs in the country would be lost in addition to the two million already displaced by foreign production throughout the 1990s, if the current growth rate in imports from Asia were to continue. It notes that the main reasons for the trend are related to globalization. An overview of the origins and logic of the system is also offered.