Sugar Industry in Formosa under Japanese Government between 1910 and 1930 (Japanese Capitalism and the Colonies)

Abstract

1. Through both of the construction of infrastructures in Formosa and the protectson policy of sugar by the Government-General of Formosa, the sugar industry in Formosa started in the 1910's. Since then it developed. Formosa sugar drove out Java sugar from the Japanese market. The most important part of Formosa trades was the sugar export to Japan. One of the large parts of Japanese capital export was applied to Formosa sugar industry. New sugar manufactories drove out old ones. 2. As Formosa and European entrepreneurs had declined by 1916, Japanese-sugar corporations gradually grew larger with mergers. At the same time they became multilateral and made inroads into other foreign countries, such as Java, China, Manchuria, and Korea. This business was controlled by five Japanese sugar dealers. They were Mitsui-Bussan, Suzuki-Shoten, Kobei Abe, Masu-da-Ya and Iwasaki-Shogyo. The railway, which was opened from north to south in 1908, organized the Formosa market along the rail. The most important goods by rail were sugar and coal. 3. After the gorden age in 1916-1920, the Formosa sugar industry was at the bottom of depression to 1935. A sugar can agriculture was challenged by a rice crop one. The labor cost increased. Here some sugar dealers, Masuda-Ya and Suzuki-Shoten, became insolvent. The mergers which consisted of four companies, Taiwan Seito Inc., Meiji Seito Inc., Dainippon Seito Inc., Ensuiko Seito Inc., were completed. These four companies integrated others, lands, raw and refining sugar process, and distribution. Not only the managers but also the workmen of these companies were mostly Japanese and Formosan workmen were few. By contrast, Europeans were few in Java sugar companies controlled by Dutch capital.