Comparing the development of China and Japan. Abstract: Economic and geographical characteristics of Japan. Attitude towards foreigners

Hello, dear readers – seekers of knowledge and truth!

Many of us are convinced that the Chinese and Japanese are alike, and the chances of distinguishing one from the other are like winning the lottery. Undoubtedly, they are similar in appearance, they are united by Eastern culture with its modesty, hard work and respect for elders, and the hieroglyphs are almost identical.

It seems that comparing China and Japan is the same as comparing, if not the sky with the earth, then one planet with another. We invite you to play a game: find the differences between China and Japan. We found at least a dozen. And you?

The development of any country is influenced by its geography and history. This gives rise to the distinctive characteristics of people who have lived on these lands for centuries and pass on their traditions to generations. The Chinese and Japanese states were no exception.

China is spread out across the vastness of mainland Asia, while Japan huddles on the islands Yellow Sea(and it doesn’t matter that there are more than six thousand of these islands). The Japanese are accustomed to crowding into small apartments, every now and then experiencing the jokes of nature in the form of disasters: earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions.

At the same time, no one has a question about where more people live: China has long been ahead of the rest of the world in terms of population, which will soon become one and a half billion. Japan ranks only tenth in this indicator.

The Celestial Empire has rich history three and a half millennia long. During this time, she replaced several powerful imperial dynasties and gave the world the greatest inventions: gunpowder, paper, tea.

The whole world took into account the interests of China, and in the 18th-19th centuries Mongolia and Tibet were subordinate to it, they paid tribute to it Asian countries, among which were Myanmar, Siam, Vietnam, Nepal.

Mentions of Japan date back to much later years - 3-5 centuries of our era. Despite this, it opened its borders to foreigners only 150 years ago, still remaining somewhat isolated and closed.

Culture

The study of Asian culture represented by the Chinese and Japanese reveals some similarities between them. Both peoples do not suffer from inflated self-esteem; they place the public good above their own interests, and in communication they strive to find a compromise. Truth appears to them as a mountain peak, which can be reached by any, even roundabout, routes, so everyone can have their own road to it.

Guests of Japan, however, revealed the original features inherent specifically to the local residents:

self-control;
strict adherence to the prescribed rules of conduct;
punctuality;
hard work to the extreme;
conservatism;
incredible politeness;
love of nature and beauty, desire for purity, cult of contemplation of beauty.

The Chinese are called more open, and sometimes even shameless. They are more smiling and sociable. But their habits, which many people, especially Westerners, would call “lack of culture,” are the stuff of legends: they say that everywhere they live is dirty, they sneeze, slurp, blow their noses and spit anywhere.

Probably, compared to the Japanese, the Chinese really behave more freely. The Japanese carefully monitor the cleanliness of the streets, and even clean up their pets properly, using special detergents on the roads.

Customs

In the land of the rising sun, shoes are of great importance. People change their shoes before entering any room: an apartment, a cafe, a clinic, an office. Even in the toilet there are special shoes that can only be worn there.

The Japanese also like to sit on the floor or low pillows, and it doesn’t matter whether it’s a tea ceremony, meditation, or just sitting with friends at a bar. Another custom is to greet and say goodbye with a bow, which shows respect for the interlocutor.

The Chinese honor their ancient traditions less zealously, so when visiting them you don’t have to worry about not knowing any rules.

Religious views

The main religions in the PRC are Buddhism, Taoism and the teachings of Confucius, in the Japanese state -. Interestingly, in both countries it is considered absolutely normal to be an adherent of several religions at once; they are tolerant of any faith.

Buddhism surprisingly unites the spiritual thought of the two peoples, although there are differences here too.

In the early 90s of the last century, there was a conflict between the Chinese government and Tibetan Buddhism, which it wanted to suppress by engaging in “patriotic education” of the monks. Today, government agencies strictly control the activities of religious organizations, including Buddhist ones.

Covers most of the population, but it is divided into great amount directions and currents. Some of them took Buddhist philosophy as a basis, others - reading mantras, and others - meditative practices.

Intertwining with each other, they formed more and more new schools, which were successful among different segments of the population. They can all be divided into two groups: classical schools and neo-Buddhism.

home and family

Family in the Eastern way of thinking in general is the main value of a person.

The institution of family in China is strictly controlled by demographic policy due to the overpopulation of the state. To get married, a man and woman who are already 24 and 22 years old, respectively, need to undergo a medical examination and apply to the house committee to obtain permission for the wedding. The same permit can be obtained for one child.

To create a Japanese social unit, you do not need to go through any special procedures. Usually a couple has two or three children.

Job

One can only envy both Chinese and Japanese employers - they have, perhaps, the most diligent workers in the world. They work tirelessly, often up to 16 hours a day. Having entered the service in their youth, most often employees work in the company until retirement.

Sometimes zealous hard work plays a cruel joke - clerks simply fall asleep at work. However, this is only encouraged by the authorities: it means that the person worked so hard that he fell asleep.
But there are more serious consequences. In Japan, they even came up with a word for this phenomenon - “karoshi”, which means death in the workplace from overwork. Unfortunately, recently cases of karoshi have become more frequent.

To relieve fatigue, both do not rush home after a tiring day of work, but go to restaurants, bars or friends, where they relieve stress often with the help of alcohol, smoking and gambling.

In pursuit of hard-earned money, people are ready to lack sleep and ruin their health. At the same time, the average Chinese worker earns $700 a month, and the Japanese worker earns over 3 thousand.

Technologies

Japan is a country of advanced developments and a seemingly different, high-tech world of the future, populated by robots and newfangled gadgets. Moreover, the quality of goods: electronics, equipment, cars is considered one of the best in the world.

China is also striving to reach new level technical development, although it is still difficult for him to break out of the image of a country of fakes, imitations, copies, where the main advantage is cheap labor.

Gastronomic preferences

Chinese and Japanese cuisines cannot be compared in a “better/worse” format – the dishes are completely different.

Chinese gastronomy is something exotic, enchanting, spicy and sour, sometimes incongruous, flavored big amount sauces and spices. Snake meat - please, turtle soup - please, a hundred-year-old egg - yes to your health.

The food of the Japanese, like themselves, is more traditional, restrained: sushi, sashimi, rolls and a hundred other microscopic dishes made from raw fish combined with rice.

Attitude towards foreigners

The influence of the outside world on China was much stronger than on Japan. Therefore, when they see foreigners, the Chinese are ready to smile, kiss, hug, make friends and almost get married.

The Japanese, although they will be extremely polite and friendly, will not have extreme trust and love for their new acquaintances.

Happiness

What could be a better indicator of life than a state of inner happiness? According to independent surveys, 60% of Chinese residents admitted that they are happy, while in the land of the rising sun this figure reaches 85%.

Conclusion

If you are reading these lines, then, no doubt, you will no longer confuse these two beautiful, but so different countries. And to consolidate your understanding of the material, go on a trip yourself and add to our list of differences between them.

Thank you very much for your attention, dear readers! If you liked the article, share it on in social networks, and we will search for the truth together.

Lesson objectives: Formation of subject-analytical and self-educational competencies when studying the countries of Japan and China.

Educational objectives: learning new material by comparison and analysis.

Developmental tasks: Formation of self-education skills and discussion culture.

Educational tasks: Formation of respectful attitude towards people with different cultures and customs.

Download:

Preview:

Scenario of an open lesson in 10th grade on the topic

“COMPARATIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF JAPAN AND CHINA” (2 hours)

Lesson objectives: Formation of subject-analytical and self-educational competencies when studying the countries of Japan and China.

Educational objectives: learning new material by comparison and analysis.

Developmental tasks: Formation of self-education skills and discussion culture.

Educational tasks: Formation of respectful attitude towards people with different cultures and customs.

Hello guys! Today we have an unusual lesson. Today we are going to get acquainted with two very peculiar Asian states - Japan and China.

Look at the topic of the lesson(slide 1)- What lesson goals can you formulate?

Goals (slide 2) 1. Study the characteristics of two countries - Japan and China.

2. Compare and find similarities and differences between Japan and China.

We can achieve the lesson goals by working with various sources of information: maps, statistical data, textbook, additional materials. The result of our work should be completed lesson cards and, of course, your new knowledge and skills on this topic. Let's begin!

General information about the country(slide 3, 4)

1. Definition of the economic and geographical location of countries. (according to plan on desks) - work with cards.

Guys, we are working in groups (Japan and China), recording the results intable of the technological map and voice it one by one.

PLAN CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ECONOMIC AND GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION OF THE COUNTRY(in table)

Each desk has one point

Determine the position of the country on the world map (which subregion it is part of).
Assess the political and geographical location: which countries it borders on, what is the level of economic development of neighboring countries, whether there are hotbeds of international conflicts on the country’s borders, whether the country’s borders are convenient for foreign economic trade relations.
Assess the country’s position in relation to global transport routes.
Draw a conclusion about the favorable or unfavorable position of the country for its economic development.

What is unique about Japan's geographic location? (1.island position, 2.lack of land borders with neighboring countries, sea border with Russia, 4.located in the center of the Asia-Pacific region) -Let's hear the additions

What is unique about China’s geographic location (2. Many neighboring countries, many hard-to-reach border sections, border with Russia) -Let's hear the additions

2. Population (slide 5.6)

Guys, what do you already know about the population of these countries? Determine their place in the world using the textbook data (p. 66, table 10 - analysis of 10 countries of the world by population) in table

Let's think about the type of reproduction in these countries, its modern features; (Let's hear the additions - Japan, China) in table.

What are the features of sexual intercourse (China-Let's hear the additions) and age (Japan-Let's hear the additions) population composition? Determine the national composition of the population using the atlas (p. 6); major religions; (Let's hear the additions) (slide 7)

Analyze maps of world population density (atlas p. 4) and determine the distribution of the population, major cities(slide 8). In table Let's hear the additions

* teacher's additions -Megalopolis Tokaido - Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka 40% of the country's inhabitants

Noted similarities and differences in the flow chart table

3. Natural resources

The nature of these countries is unique: Japan is a country of mountains(slide 9) , and in China highest mountains of the world are adjacent to the great plains.(slide 10)

What other natural resources stand out countries? Each group studies their country using the map of the atlas “Extractive Industry of the World” p. 14, tables 3,4,5,6 on pp. 356-359 in the textbook.

– What mineral resources is Japan rich in? (almost no minerals).

What mineral resources is China rich in? - reserves are especially large – (Let's hear the additions) – entries in the table.

What conclusion can be drawn from the data obtained - how do natural resources influence the economic development of the country?

How does Japan solve the problem of scarcity of natural resources?Analysis of circuits on desks(Buys from other countries, develops knowledge-intensive industries)

What advantages does its rich resource potential give China? (Many industries develop on their own raw materials)

Noted similarities and differences in the flow chart table

4. Industry

- Based on the characteristics of the EGP and the resource base of your country, make an assumption about the path of development of its economy. Leading industries of Japan - work with the atlas map p. 35, textbook text p. 234. Energy ( from circuit analysis)

Why does Japan purchase energy resources? (TES 60%); - Why did they start developing nuclear energy? (NPP 30%), HPP 10%(slide 11)

* teacher’s additions about nuclear power plants

entries in the table .: Electric power industry, ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy, chemical, shipbuilding, machine tool industry, automotive industry, electronics and robotics, etc..(slide 12, 13, 14)

What, in your opinion, is the peculiarity of the Japanese economy? (the introduction of the latest achievements of science and technology plus highly qualified workers) -Let's hear the additions

* teacher's additions - "Trade or die" - the slogan of Japanese businessmen - why?

Identify the leading industries of China using maps - (atlas p. 34), supplement with information from the text of the textbook

entries in the table .: Mining industry (coal, oil, ferrous and non-ferrous metal ores), oil refining, ferrous metallurgy, textile and food industries, mechanical engineering (automotive).(slide 15,16)

What are the features of the Chinese economy? (very fast growth rates, development of new industries, but planned with state management)

* teacher's additions -Chinese export products supplied to the USA, Europe, and Japan have high quality standards. It is produced in large coastal cities of China in modern factories. And in the northern and inland regions there are numerous handicraft enterprises that produce low-quality and cheap products for sale in Russia, the CIS countries and Eastern Europe.

Noted similarities and differences in the flow chart table

5. Agriculture

What natural conditions contribute to the development of Japanese agriculture?- Which natural features complicate its development?Let's hear the additions

Features of Japanese agriculture - analysis of atlas maps; What crops are grown in Japan?(slide 17) What else is included in the traditional Japanese diet? mariculture –Let's hear the additions - entries in the table

* teacher's additions -Changes in the Japanese diet in recent years, consequences.

Peculiarities of Chinese agriculture - analysis of maps - Which agricultural areas can be identified in China? (*Yellow and green China) - In the production of which agricultural crops does China lead (textbook pp. 368-373) entries in the table. (slide 18)

Noted similarities and differences in the flow chart table

6. Transport

Based on the peculiarities of Japan's EGP, think about what types of transport have received the greatest development in this country? – work with the text of the textbook p. 236, entries in the table. (slide 19) Let's hear the additions

* teacher's additions -Show on the map where the Shinkansen passes

What modes of transport have received the greatest development in China? - Working with the text of the textbook p. 243, how transport routes are located in China - map analysis, entries in the table

Noted similarities and differences in the flow chart table

7. Economic regions

– Based on the analysis of the atlas maps, determine whether there are differences in the territorial structure of the economy within countries? What economic regions can be distinguished in Japan and China? - work with the text of the textbook pp. 237, 243. (General - the eastern Pacific part of the country is more developed), entries in the table

Noted similarities and differences in the flow chart table

8. Culture

Japan and China are countries with an ancient and distinctive culture. (slide 20, 21) (slide 22,23)

* additions from teachers and students about the characteristics of Japanese and Chinese culture

9. Conclusion about the level and prospects of development of countries

Determine the volume (p. 111, .GDP per capita (p. 111) and structure of the GDP of Japan and China (p. 233, 238)

What type of economy are the Japanese economy and the Chinese economy? (Page 99, Fig. 41)

Guys, during two lessons you studied and compared Japan and China. What do these two countries have more similarities or differences? - we listen to different opinions and write them down your conclusion.

At the end of the lesson, let's see if you can put what you've learned into practice. Test yourself with the tests in the second part of your technology cards.

Self-test and mutual testing of knowledge

10. Conclusion (slide 24)

Guys, let's summarize our lesson.
The purpose of the lesson was:

Study the characteristics of two countries - Japan and China.
Compare and find similarities and differences between Japan and China.

Do you think we have achieved our goals? Is there anything left unexplored? Do we have something to strive for?
- What conclusion can we draw at the end of the lesson?

Your homework will consist of two parts. The first is to study paragraphs 41 and 42. The second is to complete the lesson flow chart. If you worked well in class, then your homework becomes smaller.

Thanks everyone for the lesson!

I. Economic and geographical location….….…………2

I. Natural resources….………………………………….3

II. Population....………………………………………………………...4

III. Industry…..……………………………………5

IV. Agriculture……………………………………..8

V. Transport.……………………………………………………………..9

VI. External economic relations…………………………9

VII. Russian-Japanese relations……………………………10

VIII. Interesting facts……..…………………………….11

IX. Appendix………………………………………………………..13

Economic and geographical location.

The size of Japan is 378 thousand km 2 Japan is an archipelago country located on four large (Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku) and almost 6 thousand small islands. Length coastline is almost 30 thousand km. The shores are heavily indented and form many bays and bays.

Japan is separated from the mainland by East China, Japan and Seas of Okhotsk. The country is washed by waters from the east and southeast Pacific Ocean. The Inland Sea of Japan is located between the islands of Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu.

The seas and oceans that wash Japan are of great importance for the country as a source of biological, mineral and energy resources. Japan's communication with other countries of the world is carried out by sea.

Japan's position at the junction of the Eurasian continent and the Pacific Ocean, located in the center of the Asia-Pacific region, opens up very great opportunities for the country's participation in the international division of labor.

Japan – Mountain country(75% of the territory). To expand the living space, the water area adjacent to the land is used: residential and industrial zones are located on artificial peninsulas and islands created by filling shallow waters. The bulk of the country's population lives on the coastal plains (mainly along the Pacific coast of the islands).

High seismicity and volcanism have a significant impact on economic development. Every year in Japan there are about 1.5 thousand earthquakes of varying strength. There are 15 islands active volcanoes, and several dozen more may awaken. The highest peak in Japan is Mount Fuji (3776 m). The eruption of underwater volcanoes is associated with seaquakes and the tsunami waves they cause, causing great damage to the economy (mainly Honshu and Hokkaido). However, life on the islands cannot be called idyllic. Up to 1,700 mm of precipitation falls here per year - more than in rainy Great Britain. To this we must add typhoons and tropical downpours, tsunamis and earthquakes, which are frequent guests here. And only the amazing resilience and hard work of the Japanese people allow the country not only to withstand the natural elements, but also to prosper.

The climate of Japan as a whole is quite favorable for human habitation and farming. The island of Hokkaido and northern Honshu are located in a temperate maritime climate, the rest of Honshu, the islands of Shikoku and Kyushu are in a humid subtropical climate, and the Ryukyu Islands (including Okinawa) are in a tropical climate.

The most important factor shaping the climate is the monsoons, which are accompanied by typhoons and downpours in summer and snowfalls in winter. The warm Kuroshio ocean current has a softening effect. Thanks to climatic conditions in southern subtropical and tropical regions, two harvests can be harvested per year.

In recent years, the land problem in Japan has worsened (the quality of land is deteriorating). There are mainly slightly podzolic and peaty soils, as well as brown forest and red soils, suitable for growing many crops (from potatoes in the north to sugar cane in the south). Cultivated lands make up 13% of the area, meadows and pastures – 4%.

Currently, Japan is a constitutional monarchy (i.e., an empire). The highest body of state power and the highest legislative body is the parliament, consisting of two chambers: the House of Representatives (512 deputies) and the House of Councilors (252 deputies). The term of office of deputies of the House of Representatives is 4 years, the House of Councilors is 6 years (with re-election of half of the members every 3 years). Parliament plays an important role - it adopts the budget, ratifies international treaties and agreements, and makes proposals for amendments to the Constitution.

Executive power is exercised by the cabinet of ministers headed by the prime minister. The main religions are Shintoism and Buddhism. The monetary unit is 1 yen = 10 sen.

Natural resources.

Japan is poor in mineral resources. Link to external sources raw materials and markets for finished goods has become the most important reason the country's active foreign policy.

Over 2/3 of Japan's territory is occupied by forests and shrubs; a significant part of the forests, over 1/3 are artificial plantations. Coniferous species account for 50% of the total timber reserves and 37% of the total forest area. In total, the flora of Japan contains about 300 species of herbs and over 700 species of trees and shrubs.

The rivers of Japan are numerous, but short. The largest of them is the Sinako River (367 km). Most rivers are turbulent mountain streams, sources of hydroelectric power and water for irrigation. The rivers are unsuitable for navigation. There are two types of lakes in Japan: deep-water mountain lakes and shallow-water lakes located in coastal lowlands. The abundance of rivers, lakes, and groundwater, which Japan is generously endowed with, has a beneficial effect on the development of agriculture and industry. Industrial development countries caused serious problems with environmental pollution, which led to the development of a program to improve control over the state of nature.

Recently, Japan has paid special attention to the development of recreational resources. Issues of culture and landscape aesthetics, ornamental gardening, the creation of parks and reserves, and the protection of ancient monuments have long been part of the life of the Japanese people. There are currently about 25 in Japan national parks. Tourism development comes at a cost, and there is now concern about significant damage to the natural environment. Therefore, ways are being developed to make better use of nature's attractions, while simultaneously protecting and preserving it.

Population.

In terms of population (more than 135 million people), Japan is one of the top ten countries in the world. However, over the past decade, the nature of the natural population movement has changed dramatically. Japan became the first Asian state to move from the second to the first type of reproduction. According to forecasts of Japanese demographers, the population will stabilize by 2010 at the level of 130 million people. A major problem for Japan has been the rapid increase in the proportion of people over 65 years of age. Life expectancy in this country is the highest in the world (76 years for men, 82 years for women). The population of Japan is characterized by national homogeneity (more than 95% are Japanese). Of other nationalities, the number of living Koreans and Chinese is significant.

The Japanese language is very specific and does not belong to any language family. The Japanese writing system is also very complex, using both hieroglyphs and the dictionary alphabet.

The population is distributed unevenly throughout the territory. With a high average density (more than 330 million people per 1 km 2), some areas according to this indicator are the most densely populated areas in the world (these are coastal areas of the Pacific coast, where 2/3 of the country’s population lives).

Almost 4/5 of Japan's population are urban residents. 11 cities have a population of over 1 million people. The largest urban agglomeration is Kehin (Tokyo - Yokohama), where more than 25 million people are concentrated in 150 populated areas. Together with the two other largest agglomerations Hanshin (Osako - Kobe - Quito) and Chuke (Nagoya, etc.), as well as with the cities located between them, the Keihin agglomeration merges into a single system - the Tokyo metropolis (Tokaido). Its total population is more than 60 million people.

The metropolis of Tokaido stretches along the coast for 600 - 700 km. The average population density within its borders is 800 – 1000 people. per 1 km 2. The proximity of the sea and the winding coastline create favorable conditions for development maritime transport and port construction.

Peripheral centers such as Sapporo and Sendai are also growing rapidly. And outside the metropolis, another agglomeration was formed - Chinakyushu-Fukuoka (in the north of Kyushu island).

Industry.

In recent decades, Japan has emerged as one of the leading economic powers and is the second largest national economic force in the world. Japan's population accounts for approximately 2.3% of the world's total, but generates about 16% of the gross world product (GWP) measured at current exchange rates and 7.7% based on the purchasing power of the yen. Its economic potential is equal to 61% of the American one, but in terms of production per capita it exceeds the American level. Japan accounts for 70% of the total product of East Asia, its gross domestic product(GDP), calculated based on current exchange rates, is four times the GDP of China. It has achieved high technical excellence, especially in certain areas of advanced technology. Japan's current position in the world economy is the result of its economic development in the second half of the last century. In 1938, it accounted for only 3% of the VMP.

Japan has developed ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy, mechanical engineering, chemical and food industries. Although Japan is the largest importer of raw materials for most of these industries, the country often ranks 1-2 in the world in terms of output of many industries. Moreover, industry is concentrated mainly within the Pacific industrial belt (almost 80% of industrial products are produced on 13% of the country's territory).

At first, Japanese industry developed mainly along an evolutionary path. Using imported raw materials, such basic industries as energy, metallurgy, automobile and shipbuilding, chemical and petrochemical, and construction industries were created almost anew. After the energy and raw materials crises of the mid-70s, the revolutionary path of development began to prevail in industry. The country began to increasingly limit the growth of energy-intensive and metal-intensive industries that depend on imports of fuel and raw materials and focus on the latest knowledge-intensive industries. It became a leader in the field of electronics, biotechnology, and began to use non-traditional energy sources.

II. Metallurgy has undergone major changes recently. Instead of many outdated factories, powerful plants equipped with the latest technology have been built. Lacking its own raw material base, Japan relies on imports of iron ore and coking coal. Malaysia and Canada have been and remain major suppliers of iron ore. The main suppliers of coal are the USA, Australia; to a lesser extent – India and Canada. Japan ranks second in the world in the production of refined copper, after the United States. Polymetallic ore deposits form the basis for the development of zinc and lead production.

III. Japan's energy sector is focused primarily on imported raw materials (mainly oil and petroleum products). Oil imports amount to more than 200 million tons (own production 0.5 million tons in 1997). The share of coal in consumption is decreasing, the share of natural gas in consumption is growing (imported in a reduced form). The role of hydropower and nuclear energy is growing. Japan has a powerful electric power industry. Over 60% of the capacity comes from thermal power plants (the largest are 4 million kW). A nuclear power plant has been under construction since the mid-60s. Currently, over 20 nuclear power plants operate using imported raw materials (more than 40 power units). They provide about 30% of the electricity. The country has built the most powerful nuclear power plants in the world (including Fukushima - 10 power units).

IV. Japan's shipbuilding industry is very diverse: the world's largest supertankers and other vessels leave the slipways of the shipyards of Yokohama, Osaka, Kobe, Nagasaki and many other shipbuilding centers. Shipbuilding specializes in the construction of large-tonnage tankers and dry cargo ships. The total tonnage of ships built in Japan is 40% of the world's tonnage. The country firmly ranks first in the world in shipbuilding (2nd place – Republic of Korea). Shipbuilding and ship repair enterprises are located throughout the country. The main centers are in largest ports(Yokohama, Nagasaki).

V. The production of non-ferrous metals is material and energy intensive. They belong to “ecologically dirty” industries, therefore a significant reorganization of the industry has been carried out. Over the last decade alone, the production of non-ferrous metals has decreased by 20 times. Conversion plants are located in almost all large industrial centers.

VI. Mechanical engineering in Japan includes many industries (shipbuilding, automobile manufacturing, general mechanical engineering, instrument making, radio electronics, aerospace industry). There are a number of large factories for heavy engineering, machine tools, and the production of equipment for the light and food industries. But the main industries were electronics, radio industry and transport engineering.

1) In recent years, Japan also ranks first in the world in terms of car production (13 million units per year) (industry products account for 20% of Japanese exports). The most important centers of the industry are Toyota (Nagasaki region), Yokohama, and Hiroshima.

2) The main enterprises of general mechanical engineering are located within the Pacific industrial belt: in the Tokyo region - complex machine tool building, industrial robots; in Osaka - metal-intensive equipment (near the centers of ferrous metallurgy); in the Nagoya region - machine tool building, production of equipment for other industries.

3) Enterprises of the radio-electronic and electrical engineering industries focus on centers with a qualified workforce, with a well-developed transport system, with a developed scientific and technical base. In the early 90s, Japan accounted for over 60% of the production of industrial robots, ½ of CNC machines and pure ceramic products, and from 60 to 90% of the production of certain types of microprocessors in the world. Japan maintains a leading position in the production of consumer electronics and electronic equipment. The country’s share in the global production of color televisions (taking into account production at foreign enterprises) Japanese companies is more than 60%, VCRs – 90%, etc.). The products of knowledge-intensive industries account for about 15% of Japan's total industrial production. But in general, about 40% for mechanical engineering products.

4) Oil refining and chemical industry enterprises gravitate towards the main centers of the Pacific industrial belt - in the Tokyo agglomeration of the Alan industrial belt. In the Tokyo agglomeration (Kawasaki, Chiba, Yokohama), in the Osaka and Nagoya areas, enterprises use imported raw materials. Japan ranks one of the first in the world in terms of development of the chemical industry.

5) Japan also has a developed pulp and paper industry.

6) Retains significant importance for the light and food industries. However, competition from developing countries is growing in many types of labor-intensive light industry production (due to the low cost of labor in other countries).

VI. Another important traditional branch of Japanese industry is fishing. Japan ranks among the first in the world in terms of fish catch. There are more than 3 thousand fishing ports in the country. The rich and diverse fauna of the coastal seas contributed to the development of not only fishing, but also Mari culture. Fish and seafood occupy a very large place in the Japanese diet. Pearl fishing is also developed.

A very important feature of Japanese industry is its extremely strong involvement in international economic relations.

Agriculture.

Japan's agriculture employs about 3% of the economically active population, and its share in the country's GNP is about 2%. Characteristic of Japanese agriculture high level labor and land productivity, crop yields and animal productivity.

Agricultural production has a pronounced food orientation

Crop production provides the bulk of production (about 70%), but its share is decreasing. The country is forced to import fodder and industrial crops from abroad. Pasture lands account for only 1.6% of total area. But even these areas are falling out of agricultural use as imports of cheap meat and dairy products increase. New intensive livestock farming sectors are developing. Cultivated lands account for 13% of the country's territory. However, in some areas of Japan it is possible to obtain 2-3 harvests per year, so the sown area is larger than the cultivated area. Despite the fact that cultivated lands occupy a small share of the land fund, and their value per capita is very small (24 times less than the USA, 9 times less than France), Japan meets its food needs mainly due to our own production (about 70%). The demand for rice, vegetables, poultry, pork, and fruits is practically satisfied. However, the country is forced to import sugar, corn, cotton, and wool.

Japanese agriculture is characterized by small-scale farming. Most farms are small-scale. The largest farms are engaged in livestock farming. In addition to individual farms, there are firms and productive cooperatives. These are significant agricultural units.

The coastal lowlands of all the islands, including those in the Pacific industrial belt, are large agricultural areas where rice, vegetables, tea, tobacco are grown, and livestock farming is also intensively developed. On all the great plains and in natural areas In large agglomerations there are poultry and pig farms and vegetable gardens.

Transport.

In Japan, all types of transport have developed, with the exception of river and pipeline transport. By the nature of its transport network, this country resembles countries Western Europe, but in terms of the size of cargo transportation and especially passengers, it far exceeds any of them. And in terms of the density of passenger rail traffic, it ranks first in the world. Japan also has a very large and most modern merchant marine fleet.

Foreign economic relations.

Japan is one of the world's largest trading powers. The economy is highly dependent on imports of fuel and industrial raw materials. But the structure of imports is changing significantly: the share of raw materials is decreasing and the share of finished products is increasing. The share of finished products from NIS Asia (including color televisions, video cassettes, VCRs, spare parts) is especially growing. The country also imports some types of modern machinery and equipment from economically developed countries.

In the export of finished industrial products (by value), 64% falls on machinery and equipment. Japan's international specialization on the world market is the trade in products of knowledge-intensive high-tech industries, such as the production of ultra-large integrated circuits and microprocessors, CNC machines and industrial robots.

The volume of Japan's foreign trade is constantly growing (760 billion dollars, 1997 - third place after the USA and Germany). Japan's main trading partners are economically developed countries, primarily the USA (30% of exports, 25% of imports), Germany, Australia, and Canada. Major partners are the Republic of Korea and China.

Trade volumes with the countries of Southeast Asia (29% of foreign turnover) and Europe are increasing. The largest oil suppliers to Japan are countries Persian Gulf

An important area of Japan's foreign economic activity is the export of capital. In terms of the volume of foreign investment, the country has become one of the leaders along with the USA and Great Britain. Moreover, the share of capital investment in the development of the country is growing. Japan invests its capital in trade, banking, loans and other services (about 50%), in the manufacturing and mining industries different countries peace. Acute foreign economic contradictions between Japan and the United States and Western European countries lead to a struggle for sources of raw materials, sales markets and areas of capital investment. The scope of foreign entrepreneurship of Japanese firms is expanding. Moreover, along with the transfer of environmentally hazardous, energy- and material-intensive production abroad (through the construction of enterprises in developing countries), there is also a transfer to these countries of some engineering production - those whose development in Japan is becoming less respectable (transferred to where costs are lower for labor).

Japanese firms are particularly active in NIS Asia - in the Republic of Korea, Taiwan and Singapore. Enterprises in the textile, food, clothing, metallurgical, chemical industries, electronic and precision engineering industries created there with the participation of Japanese capital are becoming serious competitors of Japanese companies themselves (especially small and medium-sized ones) in the world and even in the domestic Japanese market.

All of Japan's largest industrial companies are multinational corporations, among the largest in the world. In the list of the 500 largest TNCs in the world, very high positions are occupied by: Toyota motor, Honda motor - in the automotive industry; Hitachi, Sony, NEC - in electronics; Toshiba, Fujitsu, Canon - in the production of computer equipment, etc.

One of the most important factors in Japan's economic development is widespread participation in international trade technologies. The export of technologies is dominated by licenses in the field of electrical and transport engineering, chemistry, and construction. Geographically speaking, Japanese technology exports in the 1980s were dominated by developing countries. The exchange of licenses for technological processes in the field of electrical engineering, chemical industry, etc. is especially active.

Russian-Japanese relations.

A new way of cooperation in recent years foreign economic relations with Russia have become, where joint ventures with the participation of Japanese capital are now operating. The geographical location of the joint venture is mainly limited to the Far Eastern region. Japan has become the main trading partner of Primorsky Krai, Sakhalin region, Khabarovsk Territory. Oil, coal, non-ferrous metals, timber, cellulose, fish and seafood are exported from Russia.

In general, in the international division of labor, Japan is one of the world's financial centers, as well as a manufacturer of products from high-tech industries - “the research and production laboratory of the world.” It can be expected that by the beginning of the 21st century, Japan will overtake the United States in terms of the degree of involvement in the world economy.

Interesting Facts.

* Since ancient times, the Japanese themselves have called their country Nippon (or Nihon). This name consists of two hieroglyphic characters, one of which means “Sun”, and the second means “base”. This is where the allegorical name of Japan comes from, as the land of the rising sun. The red sun circle on the Japanese flag and the round chrysanthemum (the national flower of the Japanese) on the country's national emblem also symbolize the rising sun.

* Shintoism (from the word “Shinto”, which means “divine path”) serves the main religious and everyday rituals, and above all wedding ceremonies, which always take place in Shinto shrines. Buddhism, on the contrary, takes upon itself all funeral and funeral rites.

* There are about 40 different festivals held in Japan every year. One of them is famous snow festival on the “white” island of Hokkaido, which occurs at the beginning of February. During the festival, more than 300 snow structures rise on the main street of Sapporo. These are characters from fairy tales, literary heroes, copies of famous landowners and architectural structures.

* The total length of Tokyo streets is 22 thousand km, which exceeds half the length of the equator; There are 4 million houses in the city. However, most streets have no names at all. Signs with numbers indicate the number of the district (and there are 23 of them in the city), block, and serial numbers of apartments. Find an address in Tokyo even for the police, drivers who are famous high quality servicing, not to mention guests and visitors, is very difficult. Separate parts of the city are connected to each other by high-speed highway overpasses, but they can hardly support the movement of 5 million cars.

* Fish and all kinds of other seafood - octopus, shellfish, large shrimp - the Japanese prefer to eat raw, less often dried, although in Japanese cuisine there are many ways to prepare boiled, baked, fried in a frying pan or charcoal dishes from these products.

* The total length of the Shinkasen (“New Line”) highway is about 1100 km. Trains travel along it at an average speed of 200 km/h or more. Traffic is especially high on the Tokyo-Osaka section, 515 km long, where up to 120 pairs of trains pass per day, and about 120 million passengers are transported per year, which is equal to the entire population of the country. The distance between these cities is covered by the Hikari (“Light”) Express in 2 hours and 15 minutes. At the same time, he overcomes 66 tunnels and 3 thousand bridges.

* The world's largest nuclear power plant in Fukushima, located 200 km. North of Tokyo, in 1998, with the commissioning of the seventh reactor, the power reached 8.2 million kW. And the world's largest metallurgical plant in Fukuyama, on the banks of the Inland Sea of Japan, has a capacity of 16 million tons of steel per year.

Application.

Comparison table.

place	1	2	3
Number of people employed in industry	China	USA	Japan
Power generation	USA	China	Japan
Electricity production at nuclear power plants	USA	France	Japan
Steel	China	Japan	USA
Cars	Japan	USA	Germany
Marine vessels	Japan	The Republic of Korea	Germany
Industrial robots	Japan	USA	Germany
Electronics products	USA	Japan	Germany
Plastics	USA	Japan	Germany
Scientific equipment	USA	Japan	Germany

Bibliography.

To Asian countries and the NAFTA region. Exports to EMU countries are increasing due to the huge circulation of the euro. The superiority of exports over imports in a number of sectors of the German economy: in the chemical industry, electrical engineering, indicates the possibility of further strengthening in the domestic market, taking advantage of the weakness of the euro. Mechanical engineering is characterized by insignificant imports in general...

USA, Germany and some others European countries, although recently there has been a gradual movement to less developed countries. CHAPTER 3. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ENGINEERING COMPLEX BY THE EXAMPLE OF SOME COUNTRIES 3.1 Mechanical engineering in Japan Mechanical engineering in Japan is a rather motley structural formation. A major role belongs to the modernized industries of mass...

Technologies. This is due to a number of reasons: the proximity of Japan, which facilitates exchanges between the two states; favorable economic-geographical position and large territory; availability of qualified specialists. 1.4 FEATURES OF REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE COUNTRY’S ECONOMIC COMPLEX The growing differences between city and countryside have already become a major challenge facing...

Territory - 372 thousand square meters. km.

Population - 127 million people. (2000).

The capital is Tokyo.

Geographical position, general information

Japan is an archipelago country located on four large and almost four thousand small islands, stretching in an arc of 3.5 thousand km. from northeast to southwest along east coast Asia. Largest islands Honshu, Hokaido, Kyushu and Shikoku. The shores of the archipelago are heavily indented and form many bays and bays. The seas and oceans surrounding Japan are of exceptional importance for the country as a source of biological, mineral and energy resources.

The economic and geographical position of Japan is determined primarily by the fact that it is located in the center of the Asia-Pacific region, which contributes to the country's active participation in the international geographical division of labor.

In what is now Japan, the oldest human traces found date back to the Paleolithic period. In the 3rd - 4th centuries BC, proto-Japanese tribes came from southeastern China. In the 5th century BC, the Japanese borrowed hieroglyphic writing and adopted Buddhism in the 6th century.

During the feudal period, Japan was isolated from other countries. After the incomplete bourgeois revolution of 1867-1868, it embarked on the path of rapid capitalist development. At the turn of the 19th - 20th centuries, it became one of the imperialist powers.

In the 20th century, Japan entered and participated in three major wars (Russian-Japanese and two world wars). After the end of World War II, the armed forces were disbanded and reforms were carried out. In 1947, the emperor lost his powers (according to the constitution); Japan is now a constitutional monarchy.

The highest body of state power and the only legislative body is parliament. Natural conditions and resources Geological basis of the archipelago - underwater mountain ranges. About 80% of the territory is occupied by mountains and hills with highly dissected relief with an average height of 1600 - 1700 m. There are about 200 volcanoes, 90 active, including

highest peak

- Fudei volcano (3,776 m.) Frequent earthquakes and tsunamis also have a significant impact on the Japanese economy. The country is poor in mineral resources, but coal, lead and zinc ores, oil, sulfur, and limestone are mined. The resources of its own deposits are small, so Japan is the largest importer of raw materials. Despite small area: Hokkaido Island and northern Honshu have a temperate maritime climate, the rest of Honshu, Shikoku and Yushu Islands have a humid subtropical climate, and Ryukyu Island has a tropical climate. Japan is located in an active monsoon zone. The average annual precipitation ranges from 2 - 4 thousand mm.

The soils of Japan are mainly slightly podzolic and peaty, as well as brown forest and red soils. Approximately 2/3 of the territory, mostly mountainous areas, covered with forests (more than half of the forests are artificial plantations).

Coniferous forests predominate in northern Hokkaido, mixed forests in central Honshu and southern Hokkaido, and subtropical monsoon forests in the south.

Japan has many rivers, deep, fast and rapids, unsuitable for navigation, but a source for hydropower and irrigation.

Abundance of rivers. lakes and groundwater have a beneficial effect on the development of industry and agriculture. In the post-war period Japanese islands

environmental problems have worsened. The adoption and implementation of a number of environmental protection laws reduces the level of environmental pollution.

Population

Japan is one of the top ten countries in the world in terms of population.

Japan became the first Asian country to move from the second to the first type of population reproduction. Now the birth rate is 12 ppm, the mortality rate is 8 ppm. Life expectancy in the country is the highest in the world (76 years for men and 82 years for women).

The population is nationally homogeneous, about 99% are Japanese. Of other nationalities, the Koreans and Chinese are significant in number.

The most common religions are Shintoism and Buddhism. The population is distributed unevenly across the area. Average density - 330 people. per 1 sq.

m. but the coastal areas of the Pacific Ocean are among the most densely populated in the world. About 80% of the population lives in cities. 11 cities have millionaires. and imports raw materials for most industries; it ranks 1-2 in the world in the output of many industries. Industry is mainly concentrated within the Pacific industrial belt.

Electric power industry. Mainly uses imported raw materials. In the structure of the raw material base, oil leads, the share of natural gas, hydropower and nuclear energy is growing, and the share of coal is decreasing.

In the electric power industry, 60% of the power comes from thermal power plants and 28% from nuclear power plants, including Fukushima - the most powerful in the world.

Hydroelectric power stations are located in cascades on mountain rivers. Japan ranks fifth in the world in terms of hydroelectric power generation. In resource-poor Japan, alternative energy sources are being actively developed.

"Ferrous metallurgy. The country ranks first in the world in terms of steel production. Japan's share of the global ferrous metallurgy market is 23%.

The largest centers, now operating almost entirely on imported raw materials and fuel, are located near Osaka, Tokyo, and Fuji.

Non-ferrous metallurgy. Due to the harmful impact on the environment, the primary smelting of non-ferrous metals is being reduced. Distribution water plants are located in all major industrial centers.

Mechanical engineering provides 40% of industrial output. The main sub-sectors among the many developed in Japan are electronics and electrical engineering, radio industry and transport engineering.

Japan firmly ranks first in the world in shipbuilding, specializing in the construction of large-tonnage tankers and dry cargo ships. The main centers of shipbuilding and ship repair are located in the largest ports (Yokohama, Nagasaki, Kobe).

Japan also ranks first in the world in car production (13 million units per year). The main centers are Toyota, Yokohama, Hiroshima.

The main general engineering enterprises are located within the Pacific industrial belt - complex machine tool building and industrial robots in the Tokyo region, metal-intensive equipment in the Osaka region, machine tool manufacturing in the Nagoya region.

The country's share in the world output of the radio-electronic and electrical engineering industries is exceptionally large.

Japan ranks one of the first in the world in terms of development of the chemical industry.

Japan also has developed pulp and paper, light and food industries.

Japanese agriculture remains an important industry, although it contributes about 2% of GNP; the industry employs 6.5% of EAN. Agricultural production is focused on food production (the country provides 70% of its needs for food itself).

13% of the territory is cultivated, and in the structure of crop production (providing 70% of agricultural products), the leading role is played by the cultivation of rice and vegetables, and horticulture is developed. Livestock farming (cattle breeding, pig farming, poultry farming) is developing intensively.

Due to the exceptional place of fish and seafood in the Japanese diet, the country fishes in all areas of the World Ocean, has more than three thousand fishing ports and has the largest fishing fleet (over 400 thousand vessels).

Transport

All types of transport are developed in Japan with the exception of river and pipeline transport.

In terms of cargo transportation volume, the first place belongs to road transport (60%), the second place belongs to sea transport. The role of railway transport is declining, while air transportation is growing. Due to very active foreign economic relations, Japan has the largest merchant fleet in the world. The territorial structure of the economy is characterized by a combination of two completely different parts: the Pacific belt, which is the socio-economic core of the country (the main industrial areas, ports, transport routes and developed Agriculture

) and a peripheral zone, including areas where timber harvesting, livestock raising, mining, hydropower, tourism and recreation are most developed. Despite the implementation of regional policy, the smoothing out of territorial imbalances is still slow.

Foreign economic relations of Japan

Japan actively participates in the MGRT, foreign trade occupies a leading place, and the export of capital, production, scientific, technical and other ties are also developed.

Japan's share in world imports is about 1/10. Mainly raw materials and fuel are imported.

The country's share in world exports is also more than 1/10. Industrial goods account for 98% of exports.