Japan’s latest reason to restart nuclear: A record trade deficit

[wtmusic]

"Pick your cliché: Double whammy; Vicious circle; Stuffed. All of them describe the parlous Japanese economy, which looked even worse today when the country reported a January trade deficit caused in large measure by the shutdown of almost all of the nation’s nuclear reactors.

Not just any trade deficit, mind you. In a country long accustomed to running a surplus by selling manufactured goods like cars and electronics to the rest of the world, Japan ran up a record deficit of 1.63 trillion yen ($17.4 billion), Bloomberg reports. A deficit means that more money is leaving the country than is coming in. Rudimentary economic says that’s okay up to a point, after which, it’s not.

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The chief culprit is imported fossil fuels."

http://www.the-weinberg-foundation.org/2013/02/20/japans-latest-reason-to-restart-nuclear-a-record-trade-deficit/

[Yo_Mama]

1. Not the latest - the original

The need to import energy isn't the the "latest" reason - it was the reason for Japan going nuclear in the first place. Japan has been in the same box for decades. The population never was in favor. The leadership never could figure out

I like this Bloomberg article better:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-19/japan-export-gain-fails-to-prevent-trade-deficit-reaching-record.html

It is clear that Japan will never get out of its current box without a large domestic energy program, and it's obvious that renewables won't work. Driving down the yen without escaping some of the energy imports isn't going to work, so what do they do?

PS: It's not that they don't have to do something. Their budget is in perpetual deficit already, their demographics are disastrous, the national debt is eyeball popping, even netted.
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/10/the-next-panic/309081/

Older Japanese are going to start drawing down on their savings and then the bubble bursts.

[RobertEarl]

2. That's right

Nuclear is not the reason for the debt, but the failure of the nukes to safely be kept running is part and parcel.

Every country that relies on nukes will follow that same path. The energy required to keep nuke plants safely running will exceed the energy that comes out. Nukes are a lose/lose proposition as Japan has proved.

[GliderGuider]

3. You can only cover up reality with economic legerdemain for so long

It's been obvious since WWII that Japan had an energy access problem. They tried to "leap the chasm" by developing their high tech and auto industries, but it's clear they are vulnerable to a wide range of both foreign and domestic events. Earthquakes, tsunamis, nuclear meltdowns, demographics, as well as the potential impact of supply chain interruptions or customer insolvency (that's you, EU) paint a stark picture of the tightrope they're trying to walk.

[wtmusic]

5. +1 for using the word legerdemain...

I'm easy.

[quadrature]

4. going first class, always costs more

Last edited Thu Feb 21, 2013, 10:22 PM - Edit history (1)

Japan seems to be importing LNG to
make up the electricity shortfall..

if they want to save cash...
use coal..

don't like coal...
pay thru the nose
for LNG

..................
how much does rice cost,
in Japan?

their problems are self inflicted