China has all the sizzle so far this century, but it wasn't so long ago that Japan threw a huge shadow across global economics. During the 1990s, there was outrage from many voices in the U.S. when Japanese businesses and banks were considering buying New York City skyscrapers and landmarks.
So what happened? This overview of Japan's recent trends and current status gives us a clue. It's lengthy, but worth reading, if only for some perspective and the reminder that there are a lot of dynamics in motion in today's geopolitical world. A rising star it well may be, but there's no denying that China has big problems of its own.
Times change quickly. During the 1940s, could any American have imagined that Japan would be our ally? There are lessons for the present day within the past half century of Japan's story.
