Sustained wage moderation and some progress in labour market reforms aimed at increasing labour market participation appear to have partially shifted production towards a more intensive use of labour. There are also indications that the slower pace of productivity growth observed in the euro area since the mid-1990s reflects an insufficient use of new productivity-enhancing technologies.
Moreover, Oita has a geographical advantage of being located near rapidly growing East Asian economies, which gives the region a great advantage in terms of production and tourism.