日系企業のアジアの収益性と今後の戦略的課題

日系企業15社の事例研究

抄録

The dependence of Japanese multinational corporations on overseas operations has been steeply increasing in terms of growth and profitability since the beginning of the 21st century. Especially Asia, including China, has a greater influence than ever before. This paper is designed to review the top twenty companies of each year in terms of operating profit in Asia for the past ten years (fiscal years 1996-2005) and to focus, as case studies, on the representative fifteen companies that have been showing sustained growth and firm profitability. These fifteen companies have strength of their own in Japan, their home country, and/or in host countries of Asia in the fields of production engineering, cost competitiveness, procurement, research and development, marketing and sales, finance, strategy regarding international division of labor and so on. The key factors for high profitability of these companies are summarized in nine points. Amid the fast growing interdependence between ASEAN countries and China and dynamic changes in Asia's management environment, three basic strategies need to be adopted, namely a strategy for Greater Asia Region integrating ASEAN countries and China, drastic restructuring and integration of existing production bases, and creation of global Supply Chain Management (SCM). The profitability of Japanese multinational corporations in Asia is at the crossroads either to further increase or to decline under the severe international competition.