- The Japanese printing industry classifies printing techniques as follows:
- block-printing, letterpress printing: 35-40%
- off-set printing, lithography: 30%
- gravure printing, intaglio printing: 15%
- screen printing : 10%
- It can be said that the printing industry is influenced by the price of paper. If the price of paper is not fixed, the industry cannot stabilise. In 1995, the price of paper was raised five times, because in Japan, it was cheaper than the international price.
- In 1995, paper imports from Singapore, Korea, Indonesia and China via Hong Kong increased, and comprise 30% of total consumption. Due to improvements in the quality of imported paper, Japanese consumers have no problems with these products.
- Although the price of Japanese paper has increased, it stands at 80% of the interna- tional price, and so maintains a low price-level. Therefore, with the increase of office machine such as computers and fax machines, paper sales have increased. At the same time, competition has become fierce, with price-cutting, and reductions in profits.
- Large printing companies dared to send original printing plates to China, Korea and Indonesia from Japan, print using local paper, and brought the end product back to Japan for the distribution, due to cost considerations arising from the paper shortage. Now that the paper shortage has been settled, this practice is not so common. The paper price in Japan is usually controlled by large paper manufacturers who constantly engage in price competition.
- In the printing industry, the majority of companies are small scale and the industry itself was originally closed. Large companies have been taking lead in internationaliza- tion, and about 10 big printing companies have advanced into China and other countries, building factories, and forming foreign corporations.
- Japanese printing machine is highly efficient, and more widely used than German-made machines, despite the fact that Germany is the birthplace of printing. Japanese makers have exported printing machines to Germany, and Japanese machinery has gained a good reputation at "DRUPA", a trade fair held in Duesseldorf, Germany.
- The scale of the Japanese printing industry currently stands at 8 trillion yen and is expected to rise to 10 trillion yen in the near future. It is thought that printed advertis- ing is on the increase. In 1996, growth of a little less than 2% is expected, as problems with the paper industry have been resolved and Japan's economy is improving.
- All printing inks used are Japanese. Imports are not used at all.
- Recycled paper, old paper, began to be used for business cards and corrugated carton due to consideration for preservation of the environment. However, if used recycled paper for magazines or books, it makes an irritating sound when the pages are turned. Therefore, a newspaper company which had used recycled paper for its weekly magazines stopped using it due to a claim from readers. Technical improvements will be necessary to use recycled paper for this purpose.
- There are few problems under the Product Liability Law and insurance rates are low.
- In Japan, the printing industry comprises 10,000 member companies, with outsiders numbering 2-3 times this amount. Many small enterprises are active in this industry, which appears to be a firm factor in this field.
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