The industrial model in Japan was supported by a highly skilled domestic labor force under the lifetime employment system. However, since Japanese firms were trapped in the memory of their past successes, they were left behind in adapting themselves to the major trend changes in the global economy. The third cause is the aging and declining population (Slide 9).
To facilitate and substantiate my answer, I would first like to show you on slide 3 a chart on the evolution of the spread between overnight index swaps and German Bunds for the 10-year tenor.