瀬戸陶磁器産地の概況と問題点

Abstract

Based on traditional technology, regionally available raw materials and local capital, varieties of local traditional industries or "Jibasangyo" have grown across the nation. Many of these local traditional small & medium industries form "clustered"-type industrial districts and have contributed to economic development of the region. "Jibasangyo, " however, are currently facing difficult times, due to the prolonged business stagnation after the bursting of the "bubble economy", and the weakened competitiveness of exports as a result of the high appreciation of the yen and surge of imported goods from abroad. Seto is a typical example of these now stagnant "Jibasangyo" districts. It is necessary to analyze the economic reality of the district and to pinpoint the problems in order to find the solution. The ceramic industry of Seto has its origin in the thirteenth century, is one of the oldest in Japan, and the term "Setomono" (meaning Seto ware) has been virtually synonymous with chinaware in Japan. Ceramic products in Seto cover a wide range of commodities for both domestic and export markets, from home-use tableware, dolls or ornaments to industrial-use materials such as tiles, insulators, "new ceramic" electromagnetic products, etc. Thus, Seto can be called an all-round manufacturing complex for ceramic materials. After 1985,when the Japanese yen appreciated so much, business firms in Seto suffered a fatal blow, since export products such as tablewares and ornaments had accounted for more than 50% of the total output of Seto ceramic industries. Except for some of the advanced "new ceramic" products businesses, ceramic products manufacturers in general are in serious trouble now. This dissertation presents a detailed picture of the existing economic situation of recent Seto businesses and its problems.