And, more recently, the bursting of the bubble economy in the early 1990s led to debt overhang and excess labor, which further increased the burden of such adjustment. We hear anecdotes that the delay in corporate restructuring has kept competent human resources in existing firms, and this is one of the main reasons for the low rate of new business openings in Japan.
All these are formidable challenges. However, I believe they can be overcome, no matter how difficult they may be, as long as the private sector makes steady efforts to display its creative power, and the government and the Bank of Japan give strong support to such efforts.