The role of Japan’s economic institutions and their impact on business can be quite different from that of counterpart institutions in Western countries. Doing business in Japan, therefore, requires an understanding of how its business community interacts with its institutions and, more importantly, how government influences the business environment.

A working knowledge of Japan's economy is important for other reasons as well. In today’s world, no business can ignore the activity of Japan’s companies and the Japanese economy. To name a few examples, changes in the Japanese bond market affect mortgage rates in the United States, the development of luxury car lines in Japan has eroded the profits of European car makers, and the opening of Japan’s agricultural markets has benefited Brazilian orange growers and Argentinean cattle ranchers.