In Le Monde Diplomatique, a take on Japanese growth:
Japan is back. Its economy has been growing faster than at any time since the late 1980s. Consumer spending is strong; employment conditions are good. Toyota recently announced a plan to hire more than 3,000 new employees, the first time in 15 years that it has hired so many, and is poised to overtake General Motors as the world’s largest car manufacturer. As well as manufacturers, financial and service companies are doing well.
Although this recovery started four years ago, many outside Japan have not acknowledged it. One reason might be that we prefer hearing about Japan’s misfortunes, a case of schadenfreude. Japan’s recovery is controversial, thought of as a chimera because it goes against conventional wisdom.