Masaaki Shirakawa: Globalization and population aging – challenges facing Japan Speech by Mr Masaaki Shirakawa, Governor of the Bank of Japan, to the Board of Councillors of Nippon Keidanren (Japan Business Federation), Tokyo, 22 December 2011. *  *  *  Introduction I am honored to have this opportunity to address the representatives of Japan’s economy gathered here today.
We have just over a week left in a year in which the most notable event for our nation was definitely the Great East Japan Earthquake of March 11. Speaking only about the economic impact of this terrible event, Japan’s economy suddenly faced enormous downward pressures arising from damage to production facilities, disruptions in supply chains, and shortages in electricity supply.