日本製造業減少在中國投資

Recently the NHK News on-line reported the following:

製造業進出先 中国トップ転落

12月2日 4時10分

政府系金融機関が毎年、行っているアンケート調査で日本の製造業が有望な進出先と考える国として２１年連続でトップだった中国が初めて４位に転落し、代わって東南アジアの国が順位を上げました。

この調査は国際協力銀行が海外に進出している日本の製造業の企業を対象に毎年、行っているもので、ことしは４８８社から回答がありました。
それによりますと、この先３年程度で有望な進出先として最も多くの企業が挙げた国は、インドネシアで去年の３位から初めてトップとなりました。
２位は去年と同じインド、３位は去年４位だったタイが入り、去年まで２１年連続でトップだった中国は、初めて４位に転落しました。
中国を選ばなかった企業にその理由を尋ねたところ、人件費の上昇や労働力の確保が難しくなっていることや日中関係の悪化による政治的なリスクを挙げる企業が多かったということです。
中国が順位を落とす一方、上位２０位の中にＡＳＥＡＮ＝東南アジア諸国連合の９つの国が入りました。
国際協力銀行の阿由葉真司課長は、「日本企業はＡＳＥＡＮ地域を製造拠点として活用してきたが市場としても非常に有望だと評価し始めた結果だろう」と話しています。

(試譯文)

Through the questionnaires, every year a government financial agency surveyed the countries which were considered as the promising place to advance Japan's manufacturing industry; China which was at the top for 21 consecutive years had fallen to the 4th place for the first time, and the ranking of countries in Southeast Asia rose instead.

The Japan Bank for International Cooperation conducted this investigation every year for companies in the manufacturing industry in Japan which had marched out to the overseas, 488 companies replied to it this year.

According to it, Indonesia, for about three years the country which most companies had mentioned as a promising place to advance was at the top for the first time, moving up from the 3rd place of last year.

India was at the 2nd place which was the same as last year. Thailand advanced to the 3rd place from the 4th place of last year, and China which was at the top for 21 consecutive years until last year fell to the 4th place for the first time.

It was said that when asked about the reasons the companies that did not choose China, many companies mentioned about the rise of personnel expenses and the difficulties in ensuring the supply of labor force. The increase in the political risk due to the aggravation of Japan-China relations was also mentioned by many companies.

While China dropped in the ranking, the nine countries of the ASEAN= Association of Southeast Asian Nations moved into the top 20 places.

Japan Bank for International Cooperation Section Chief Shinji Ayuba said "although the ASEAN region has been utilized as a production base, when Japanese companies begin to review that flexibly, it may be a very promising market location also as a result".

It seems that Japan is reducing its investments in China.