Lost decades of Japan all due to labour rigidity

DESPITE all the hype and enthusiasm surrounding Abenomics' three arrows, there appears to be little change in the Japanese economy's growth trajectory since Shinzo Abe took office at the end of 2012. Japan recorded its fifth technical recession this year, defined as two consecutive quarters of contraction in real GDP, since the global financial crisis in 2008.

However, the malaise plaguing the Japanese economy is anything but technical. How bad is the situation in Japan? Perhaps doing the following simple exercise may provide a hint: name five internationally competitive non-auto Japanese companies. Now, do the same for the US and Germany.

You get the gravity of the problem?