日本硫安工業の自立化過程
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概要
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After the First World War, Japan's economy experienced a heavy industrialization, and especially chemical industries developed in connection with those industries that had already developed: agriculture, cotton industries, and war industries. But they had to compete with foreign industries in developing and consolidating their foundations. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the Japan ammonium sulphate industry, which became independent of foreign firms in 1920s and '30s for price changes and for their decisions in technical problems. It can be said that the ammonium sulphate price inJapan had been determined by those in England, Germany, and America until 1932, when the gold standard was abolished in Japan. The price, therefore, moved in keeping with the fluctuation of foreign exchange rates as well; when the yen exchange rate became higher, it turned lower, and when the former lower, the latter higher. So the fall of price between 1929 and 31 was caused not only by the world crisis in 1929, but also by a high yen exchange rate. The falling rates of yen after 1932, on the contrary, let the price of ammonium sulphate soar to such an extent as if there were a tariff barrier. And in October 1932 when the association of ammonium sulphate producers (Ryuuan Haikyu Kumiai) was organized, they fixed a cartel price. Without protection of a tariff barrier, it was necessary for the Japanese ammonium sulphate firms to undersell foreign firms, find so they had to reduce the cost through technical methods. The largest part of the cost went for making hydrogen. Since they had no monopolistic advantage over each other with respect to the know-how, they tried to reduce the cost in terms of materials: electricity, coal, or coke. In selecting manufacturing techniques, they chose the most suitable method in relation to the groups of enterprise they belonged to. Some of them-Nihon Chisso Hiryo Co., Ltd. and Showa Hiryo Co., Ltd.-selected the methods of making hydrogen with electric power; and the others-Miike Chisso Kogyo Co, Ltd., Toyo Koatsu Co.,Ltd., and Sumitomo Kagaku Co.,Ltd.-selected those of making it with coal and coke. It can be said that no matter what kind of know-hows they might introduce almost none of them stood at advantage over the others. But it should be noticed that there was some difference in the ways they adopted the manufacturing techniques; the former group, called `Shniko Zaibatsu ' or new zaibatsu, adopted what were even at the stage of test plant in a smaller scale, and the latter, belonging to old zaibatsu, adopted what had already been developed and known for their merit.
- 社会経済史学会の論文
- 1977-08-30
著者
関連論文
- Barbara Molony, Technology and Investment : The prewar Japanese Chemical Industry, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1990, ix+396p
- 下野克己著, 『戦後日本石炭化学工業史』, 御茶の水書房、一九八七年一二月、二五五頁、二六〇〇円
- 日本硫安工業の自立化過程