Abstract

This chapter examines, from a Japanese perspective, the key trends that have come to dominate global production and trade in manufactures. The first section briefly addresses the relative decline in manufacturing within the developed economies. The second section examines the contrasting experience of Japan in two key sectors – the vertically integrated automobile sector and the horizontally fragmented electronics industry. The third section highlights some keys to success in the global value chain. The fourth section touches on a number of future challenges likely to be faced by global manufacturing activity. The fifth section concludes.