Musashi University

About: Musashi University is a education organization based out in Tokyo, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Supply chain & Frugivore. The organization has 125 authors who have published 328 publications receiving 3844 citations.

Post-crisis Exchange Rate Regimes in ASEAN:A New Empirical Test Based on Intra-daily Data

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to investigate what affected the post-crisis exchange rates of three ASEAN countries: Singapore, Thailand, and Malaysia. Our critical departure from previous studies is the use of intra-daily exchange rates. The use of the intra-daily data is useful in removing possible estimation biases which the choice of numeraire may cause. It can also contrast exchange rate movements during the time zone when the government intervention is active with those when the intervention is not active. We examine how and when the ASEAN currencies changed their correlations with the U.S. dollar and the Japanese yen. We find significant structural breaks in the correlations during the time zone when East Asian market is open. In the post-crisis period, the first structural break happened when Malaysia adopted the fixed exchange rate and the second break happened when some East Asian countries introduced inflation targeting. The structural breaks suggest strong monetary and real linkages among the ASEAN countries.

Provision of Collective Behavior in Market Settings: A Study of Closed-Auction Markets for Antiques and Secondhand Goods in Japan

Abstract: This study explores how market order emerges in the closed auction markets for antiques and secondhand goods in Japan. Most auction markets for antiques and secondhand goods are exclusive to dealers in Japan. The Antique Business Act (Kobutsu Eigyo Ho) states that participants in auction markets must have a secondhand goods dealer license. Participants must obtain the permission of market managers to enter the markets as well. Dealers often belong to several auction markets and associate with other members. Informal norms and conventions, and reciprocal and hierarchical relationships develop through repetitive interactions among participants in the auctions, which can bring order in the markets. Norms and conventions help market participants anticipate other members’ behavior. However, norms and conventions alone are not sufficient to generate market order; enforcement mechanisms are necessary. A hierarchy is a typical enforcement mechanism. High status participants can exert their influence to sanction violators in the markets. Also, reciprocal relationships can prevent violation of norms and conventions, and facilitate cooperative and give-and-take behavior. On the other hand, reciprocal and hierarchical relationships will distort fair and competitive auctioneering. The cultural script of market competition is sometimes utilized for preventing the malfunction. This interplaying multiple devices of market, reciprocity, and hierarchy as well as norms and conventions altogether contribute to realizing order in the closed auctions.

Japan's Cotton Spinning Industry: 1868 - 1897

Abstract: This paper analyzes the elements affecting the transformation of Japan's comparative advantage in the cotton spinning industry from 1868 to 1897. Econometric analysis supports the notion that the economies of scale due to learning-by-doing and externalities influenced the productivity of the cotton spinning industry. This suggests that the establishment of pilot mills, the extension of subsidized loans, and the other government policies to support this infant industry positively affected its development.

Surveying Japanese media usage during the Beijing Olympics as a measure of audience attitudes towards China and the Chinese.

Abstract: An online survey of 624 respondents was divided evenly between men and women, with exactly 104 subjects in each of the six generational groupings. The respondents' occupational and other demographic characteristics do not deviate significantly from Japanese averages comprising a good cross-representational Japanese sample. A pre-Olympic survey was conducted on August 6–7, followed by a second survey carried out after the Olympics on September 1–2, 2008. Audience images of China and the Chinese improved as a result of exposure to media content during the Olympics period, although the improvements varied in degree somewhat depending on the issue at hand. As for reported audience attitudes towards China and the Chinese, the pre- to post-Olympic shifts were far less significant than observations of stable (i.e. apparently not significantly influenced by Olympics media coverage) attitudes/impressions in line with the audience members' individual ideological orientation. Among the ideological-type groups, those...