STAGGERING - AT 6:45 A.M. ET:  Remember when Japan was poised to take over the international economy?  Remember when American executives were encouraged to learn Japanese?  My, how the mighty have fallen - on their swords.  Japan is suffering staggering economic losses, with substantial implications for the United States.  Japan is a major trading partner, and holds some of our debt.  London's Telegraph tells the sad story:

Japan's economy has suffered its worst quarterly performance since records began more than five decades ago as it continues to struggle with the economic crisis.

The world's second largest economy experienced a quarterly 4 per cent shrink in its gross domestic product (GDP) reflecting the continued impact of the recession on the export-dependent nation.

Hit hard by a global plunge in demand for cars and technology, Japan's economy shrank 15.2 per cent in the first quarter compared to last year, according to Cabinet Office figures.

The contraction eclipses that of other industrialised nations: the nation's GDP slide was more than double the 1.6 per cent recorded in the US and significantly higher than Europe's record 2.5 per cent.

COMMENT:  Economic success is round.  It rolls from one nation to another.  We're now being told by economic "experts" that China will leave us in the dust.  When you hear that, remember Japan.  The last hot item to come out of Japan was the Sony Walkman, the iPod of the last generation.

May 20, 2009