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Japan Africa
Africa has been the least important world region for
Japan's
trade and investment. Japan had little historical
experience with
Africa and little interest in economic ties with the
region, except
for development of raw material supplies.
In 1990 Africa accounted for just over 1 percent of
Japan's
imports and for just over 1 percent of its exports.
Japan's largest
trading partner in Africa in 1990 was South Africa, which
accounted
for 30 percent of Japan's exports to Africa and 50 percent
of
Japan's imports from the region. Because of trading
sanctions
imposed on South Africa by the United States and other
countries,
Japan emerged as South Africa's largest trading partner
during the
1980s. This position proved embarrassing to Japan and led
it to
downgrade some diplomatic and economic relations with the
country.
Despite the fact that South Africa remained Japan's
largest trading
partner in the region, both exports and imports in 1988
had
declined by more than one-third from their value in 1980.
Africa was the location of only US$4.6 billion or 2.5
percent
of Japanese foreign direct investment in 1988, of which
most
(US$3.6 billion) was in Liberia. As in Panama, this
investment was
mainly in the form of flag-of-convenience shipping.
Japanese data
showed virtually no direct investment in South Africa
(US$1
million), and no new investment in this country during the
1980s.
Data as of January 1994
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