Japan was once at the centre of a colonial empire that stretched from Manchuria to Korea and to south-eastern Asia (Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines). The country was occupied in 1945 by the USA, which administered it until 1951, imposing disarmament. The USA encouraged the reconstruction of the country which soon became an economic powerhouse. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) governed the country, except for brief interruptions, from 1950. Japan is a constitutional monarchy. On the basis of the Constitution of 3 November 1946, the Emperor (“symbol of the state and the unity of the people”) performs functions that are largely representative. The Diet (Kokkai) is made up of two Chambers both elected by direct suffrage and with a mixed (first-past-the-post and proportional) system: the Chamber of Counsellors, or Upper Chamber (Sangi-in, 242 members elected for six years, with half renewed every three years), and the House of Representatives, or Lower Chamber (Shūgi-in, 465 members elected for four years). The Diet exercises legislative power and political control of government activity. The government is headed by a Prime Minister formally appointed by the Emperor after being designated by the Diet.

Defence.
After defeat in 1945, Japan was required to add an article to the Constitution to renounce war and the upkeep of armed forces. In actual face, known as “Self-Defense Forces” (Jieitai), the country boasts a sizeable military apparatus. A reinterpretation of the Constitution in 2015 allows direct military intervention abroad to defend the country or its allies. On the island of Okinawa there are several military bases with 50 thousand US soldiers.

Justice.
The judicial system draws inspiration from continental European civil law, with Anglo-Saxon influences.

Population by age and gender (% - 2017)
	75+ 60-74 45-59 30-44 15-29 0-14
MALE	AGE	FEMALE

Average life expectancy and the population percentage of the elderly are among the highest in the world.
There are several small of autochthonous ethnic groups, such as the Ainu on the island of Hokkaidō, continually discriminated against and only officially recognized by Parliament on 12 June 2008.

Economic situation.
Prime Minister Abe’s programme to boost economic growth is based on an expansive monetary policy, accompanied in 2016-17 by negative interest rates, tax breaks and hefty public investment. This proved beneficial to exports but also raised inflation, hence labour costs went up, sparking difficulties for certain sectors such as construction. In 2014, value-added tax was raised from 5% to 8% to increase state proceeds and lower the high deficit. A further increase (up to 10%) was postponed until 2019 in order not to depress growth even more, but the very high public debt (about 235% of the GDP), the highest in the world, weighs on the country’s future.

Primary sector
Agriculture and forests.
Areas that may be cultivated are limited. Notwithstanding the employment of advanced agronomical techniques, the country is not able to satisfy its nutritional requirements. The main crop is rice, which alone takes up more than a half of cultivated areas in the country; other important food crops are sugar beet and sugar cane, wheat, potatoes and sweet potatoes. Japanese tea is renowned, grown in particular on the mountain slopes of the islands of Kyūshū, Shikoku and southern Honshū. Citrus fruits and apples are among the most important fruit crops. A relatively high production of timber comes from the forested areas which account for approximately 68% of the country.
Livestock and fishing.
Cattle-farming concerns, above all, cows and pigs. The breeding of silkworms is still practiced. Japan is among the top countries in the world in terms of the quantity of fish caught (above all sardines, mackerel and salmon).
The main fishing ports are Wakkanai, Abashiri, Kushiro, Hakodate and Otaru (on the island of Hokkaidō); Hachinohe, Miyako, Shiogama, Choshi, Tsukiji, Misaki, Shimizu, Yaizu, Muroto, Niigata, Sakai and Shimonoseki (Honshū); Fukuoka, Nagasaki and Makurakazi (Kyūshū). Aquaculture is developed (especially seaweeds and molluscs).
Despite the international moratorium on whale-hunting, Japan continues to hunt whales with the pretext of doing so for “scientific purposes”. Coral and pearls are extracted on the southern coasts of Shikoku and Kyūshū (natural pearls in the Bay of Ōmura, near Nagasaki and cultivated pearls in the pearl-beds on the island of Kyūshū and in the prefectures of Ehime and Mie).

Secondary sector
Minerals.
Japan is lacking in mining resources, of which it is a major importer. Hydrocarbon production is limited: the main oilfields (almost always linked to gas deposits) are situated in Akita, Yamagata and Niigata (Northeast Honshū) and in the southern part of the island of Hokkaidō; natural gas is extracted in the Kantō region and in Nagaoka (on the island of Honshū).
Iron, lead, silver and zinc deposits are scarce or practically depleted. Small deposits of gold are mined in Kagoshima (on the island of Kyūshū). Mining from the seabed is being developed. There are substantial reserves of dolomite, limestone, iodine (Chiba, Niigata and Miyazaki), siliceous and pyrophyllite sand (Nagasaki, Okayama and Hiroshima).
Energy.
In order to reduce dependence on energy from abroad, Japan has developed its own electro-nuclear sector. The main power stations (42 reactors, with another 2 currently being built) are at Hamaoka, Genkai, Ikata, Mihama, Sendai, Takahama, Tokai, Tomari, Tsuruga, Kashiwazaki, Ōi and Fukushima (severely damaged by the 2011 earthquake); following the incident at the latter, all of the reactors were shut down, but seven of them were reactivated.
Industry.
Large steelworks are located in the regional centres of Kitakyūshū, Hanshin-Keihin, Kamaishi and Muroran (Hokkaidō). Aluminium production has also reached remarkably high levels, using imported minerals (plants are mainly concentrated in Shizuoka Prefecture). Cadmium, cobalt (at Niihama), indium, magnesium (at Hyūga and Takehara), nickel (at Hachinohoe, Hyūga, Matsusaka, Miyazu, Niihama), lead (at Chigirishima, Harima, Hida, Hosokura, Kosaka, Takehara), copper (at Hitachi, Kosaka, Naoshima, Iwaki, Saganoseki, Tamano), titanium (Iwaki, Okayama, Yokkaichi) and zinc production (at Annaka, Hachinohoe, Harima, Hida, Hikoshima, Iijima) are also considerable.
The main refineries are located at Chiba, Kurashiki, Yokohama, Kawasaki, Yokkaichi, Sakai, Nagoya, Sendai, Ōita, Wakayama, Iwakuni, Yamaguchi, Imabari, Ōsaka.
Among the main chemical plants are: for sulfuric acid, Hitachi, Saganoseki, Ōsaka, Besshi, Shimonoseki, Ōmuta and Wakayama; for caustic soda, Makiyama, Tokuyama, Yokkaichi, Ube, Ōji and Toyama, Nagaoka, Amagasaki, Kokura, Yokohama, Nobeoka and Okayama; for ammonium sulfate, Shimonoseki, Ōmuta, Sunakawa, Kawasaki, Niihama, Hachinohe, Yokohama, Toyama, Minamata and Nagoya; for superphosphates, Hakodate, Nagoya, Yokohama, Beppu, Ōsaka and Yokkaichi; for colourings, Ōmuta, Ōji, Kurosaki and Koriyama. The synthetic rubber industry has its main plants in the cities of Kōbe, Tōkyō and Ōsaka.
The cement industry is well-developed in Hakodate, Onoda, Ube, Kawara, Tagawa, Kanda and Hindoe.
The mechanic and transport sectors are highly developed in all sectors. The car industry is of an international level, with plants on the island of Honshū; the large car companies (Mitsubishi, Honda, Nissan and Toyota) have set up numerous production and assembly plants in other countries in eastern Asia, in Latin America, in the USA and in Europe. The motorcycle and bicycle industries are flourishing (in Tōkyō, Ōsaka and Aichi). For ship-building the main shipyards are those at Kōbe, Nagasaki, Tamano, Aioi, Tsurumi, Yokohama, Hiroshima and Uraga.
A modest aeronautical (Mitsubishi) and aerospace industry is present with two launch pads at Kagoshima and Tanegashima. Precision mechanics, electronics, micro-electronics and computer science have achieved high competitive levels: the main centres are at Dochu, Hakodate, Aomori, Misuzawa-Hanamaki, Akita, Yamagata, Sendai, Koriyama, Shinanogawa, Nagaoka, Toyama, Asama, Kōfu, Utsunomiya, Hamamatsu, Nishi, Kibi-Kogen, Kagawa, Matsuyama, Hiroshima-Chuo, Ube, Kunisaki, Kurume, Tosu, Ōmura, Kumamoto, Kokubu and Miyazaki.
In the textile area, a traditional sector is silk, contributing to exports. The main centre for cotton is Ōsaka. Artificial fibres are worked at Hiroshima, Yamaguchi, Shiga, Ehime, Miyazaki, Tokushima and Kumamoto; synthetic fibres at Kurashiki, Okayama, Amagasaki, Sakoshi, Yodogawa, Ōgaki, Aichi, Nagoya, Iwakuni, Nobeoka and Inagawa.
The paper industry is concentrated on the region of Tōkyō and Ōsaka; the largest paper mill in the country is at Tomakomai (Hokkaidō). The glass industry has its main centres at Amagasaki, Makiyama, Tsurumi, Yokkaichi, Wakamatsu and Maizuru (for glass sheets); at Tōkyō, Ōsaka, Fukuoka and Aichi (for bottles); for optic glass there are laboratories in Tōkyō, Ōsaka, Kanagawa and Shizuoka. Porcelain is highly renowned: an ancient ceramic centre is at Seto (near Nagoya), known for its statuettes; at Nagoya tableware is produced along with insulators and industrial articles.

Tertiary sector
Foreign trade.
The country still maintains its position as one of the most important players in international trade, especially for the export of high added value goods. After the US withdrawal, in 2017 the country was among the signatories of the new Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), while in 2018 a free trade agreement was signed with the EU (JEFTA).

Main exports (M US$ - 2017) machinery 138 414, cars 93 372, electrical and electronic equipment 70 461, vehicles and parts thereof 52 856, optical and electro-medical appliances 39 830, iron and steel 37 791, chemicals 32 824, electronic integrated circuits and microassemblies 26 677, plastics 25 145, ships and boats 12 250, petroleum products 10 769, gold 8 434, refined copper 7 419, jewels and precious stones 6 763, telephones 4 971, tyres 4 850, dyes and paints 4 684, pharmaceuticals 4 557, photographic goods 4 476, aircraft and parts thereof 4 245, tools and implements 3 892, cosmetics 3 612, miscellaneous manufactured articles 3 574, telecommunications equipment 3 461, synthetic and artificial fibres and yarns 3 302, glass 3 096, rubber products 2 966, paper and paperboard 2 673, soap and detergents 2 660, toys and sports equipment 2 602

Finance and banking.

The Bank of Japan (Nippon Ginkō) carries out its functions as a central bank. In 2007, the privatization of the Japanese postal system was completed, the most important financial institution of the country. The Tōkyō Stock Exchange is one of the busiest in the world.

Tourism. Tourist flows mainly come from China, South Korea, Taiwan and the United States.

Transport.
The road network absorbs over 90% of commercial traffic and 65% of passenger traffic. Since 1988 the railway tunnel, Seikan (53.85 km), connecting the islands of Honshū and Hokkaidō has been in function.
In 1998, Akashi-Kaikyō (3910 m) viaduct, connecting Kōbe to the island of Awaji was opened to traffic. The Shinkansen high-speed lines, operating since 1964, have steadily been extended to reach all the country’s major cities with a network of approximately 2800 km. In 2015 work began on the magnetic levitation railway between Tōkyō and Nagoya.

Media and telecommunication.
The public radio and television service depend on the Nippon Hōsō Kyōkai; commercial television channels are numerous.

Education, culture
& research.
The Japanese school system is based on nine years of compulsory school attendance, from 6 to 15 years of age, divided into six years of elementary school (Shogakko) and three years of middle school (Chugakko); secondary education includes three types of courses: full-time (for three years), part-time and correspondence (four years).

Social security and health.
The pension system is made up of two elements: a national pension system for all citizens (funded by compulsory contributions) and a work pension (with contributions funded half by the workers and half by the companies). Private insurance schemes are very widespread.