Medium to high interest in mid-career recruitment within companies
April 19, 2021 (Monday) Cloudy, then rain
- Corporate mid-career recruitment ambitions are rising.
A recruitment plan survey (final tally) compiled by The Nihon Keizai Shimbun on the 18th shows that major companies’ mid-career hires for FY2021 will rise by 16% from FY2020, the highest growth in 10 years.
This is because elevating DX (digital transformation) personnel is essential.
- Tarō Kōno, Minister for Regulatory Reform, on the 18th indicated that by the end of September, they expect to secure vaccines for all eligible recipients.
- On the 17th, the U.S. and China agreed to issue a joint statement on climate change following a visit by U.S. climate envoy John Kerry to China.
Both countries agreed to cooperate on countermeasures, and China showed a positive stance toward participating in the U.S.-hosted Climate Change Summit.
Cooperation between the two major CO2 emitters, the U.S. and China, represents a step forward in global warming countermeasures.
(Nikkei 1st page)
- Following the joint statement after the Japan-U.S. summit, the Japanese government will begin strengthening defense capabilities across land, sea, and air.
China is rapidly expanding its military, and accelerating budgetary support is urgent for equipment expansion essential to U.S.-Japan cooperation, such as missile defenses and island defense.
- Kerry, U.S. President’s Special Envoy for Climate, while visiting Korea on the 18th, in Seoul commented on the marine discharge of Fukushima’s treated wastewater,
stating that “I am confident the Japanese government is closely coordinating with the IAEA,” supporting Japan’s position.
- Resona Bank <8308> [Closing price 451.4 yen] and Saitama Resona Bank will begin offering mortgage loans via smartphone apps from the 19th.
The target is used condominiums built since 1990, with about 3.4 million properties in their service areas to choose from.
Loan cap is 50 million yen.
- The United States is set to begin exporting COVID-19 vaccines.
As domestic vaccinations progress, a surplus of several hundred million doses is anticipated.
A former USAID official will be appointed as the export coordinator, initially supplying to countries such as Mexico.
This will help deter vaccine diplomacy by China and Russia.
- China is preparing to list an “Infrastructure REIT” targeting domestic highways and other projects.
With local governments and state-owned enterprises facing debt problems, funds for public works will be raised from institutional investors and individuals to stabilize financial footing.
There are many challenges, such as limited profitable infrastructure deals with stable earnings.
- World-wide COVID-19 infection numbers (death tolls) as of 4/18 4:00 PM, compiled by Johns Hopkins University: global total 140,730,000 cases (11,535 deaths)
U.S. 31,628,017 (680) India 14,788,003 (1,501) Brazil 13,900,091 (2,929) France 5,321,176 (189) Russia 4,640,537 (392) UK 4,401,176 (36)
Turkey 4,212,645 (288) Italy 3,857,443 (310) Spain 3,407,283 (0) Germany 3,154,305 (77) Argentina 2,677,747 (80) Poland 2,675,874 (617)
- The world’s largest automobile show, the Shanghai International Automobile Show, opened in Shanghai on the 19th.
Nearly 150 new models are on display, mainly EVs.
The lineup follows and expands on traditional automakers and new entrants like Tesla, intensifying EV competition.
Exhibits from IT and other non-traditional sectors are notable.
- China’s largest telecom equipment maker, Huawei, held a car-related product presentation in Shanghai on the 18th,
and announced plans to invest about $10 billion annually in related R&D from 2021 onward.
With U.S. government regulation weighing on its main smartphone business, Huawei aims to grow its automotive business as a new pillar.
- Funds investing in early-stage startups are increasing in size.
The average fund size per fund rose to 5 billion yen in 2020, up fourfold from five years earlier.
In March, CyberAgent Capital (Tokyo, Shibuya) <4751> [Closing price 1,949 yen] established a new fund of about 6 billion yen.
- Artificial intelligence (AI) is bringing innovations to optical character recognition (OCR) technology.
It can recognize printed text and rapidly digitize it, with rapid domestic uptake.
AIISIDE <4488> [Closing price 38950 yen] used its technology experimentally in FY2020, reducing 500 hours of work and enabling a 20-person department to handle it.
- Domestic COVID-19 cases in Japan: confirmed cases 534,923 (new cases +4,093 as of 8:00 PM on the 18th) Deaths 9,662 (+18)
Hokkaido 22,381 (+98) Tokyo 130,083 (+543) Kanagawa 50,871 (+220) Chiba 31,594 (+145) Saitama 35,448 (+166)
Kyoto 10,922 (+116) Osaka 67,972 (+1,220) Hyogo 25,740 (+406) Fukuoka 20,221 (+110) Aichi 30,216 (+207)
Ibaraki 7,432 (+47) Nara 4,986 (+79) Wakayama 1,778 (+44) Okayama 3,213 (+61) Ehime 1,955 (+48) Okinawa 11,487 (+92)
(19th, Nikkei Newspaper)
- President Joe Biden, in his first in-person meeting as president, chooses Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.
Amid U.S.-China tensions, what role does Japan play with the United States?
The summit outlined several concrete themes and pressed Japan to prepare.
Described as the “Compass of Alliances,” the joint statement includes language emphasizing the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, a kind of litmus test for Japan.
The reference to the “Taiwan Strait” marks the first such mention since diplomatic normalization with China in 1969 (52 years ago).
- During his visit to the United States, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga spoke by phone on the morning of the 17th (Japan time night of the 17th) with Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla in Washington, requesting additional supply of the COVID-19 vaccine to Japan.
- The Japan-U.S. leaders’ summit discussed Taiwan and human rights issues, drawing stronger Chinese backlash.
A spokesperson at the U.S. Embassy in Japan on the 17th issued a statement expressing “strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition” to the joint statement.
- SoftBank <9434> [Closing price 1,429.5 yen] will introduce drones that serve as base stations for mobile networks.
Within a 10 KM radius, up to 2,000 devices can simultaneously make calls.
In the event that land-based base stations are damaged by disasters, restoration aims to occur within one hour of arrival on the scene.
(Nikkei 1st page)
- The market for high-value items such as diamonds, luxury cars, and luxury apartments is vibrant.
Stock markets around the world are at record-high levels, with wealthy individuals who hold financial assets resuming spending.
The pandemic has also made it harder to spend on overseas travel and other services.
- On the 16th, Prime Minister Suga requested cooperation for the Tokyo Summer Olympics and Paralympics during his summit with President Biden.
The United States plans to send the world’s largest team, exerting substantial influence on the Olympics.
The joint statement notes US support for hosting by the Prime Minister, but does not mention sending a delegation of athletes.
- With a global semiconductor shortage continuing, Toyota <7203> [Closing price 5,830 yen] is keeping its impact on production limited.
Leveraging lessons from the Great East Japan Earthquake, the company has quadrupled inventories of semiconductors and other components across its supply chain, yielding results.
- Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, who announced his resignation set for September, will publish his final annual letter to shareholders during his tenure.
As a new commitment, Bezos stated that Amazon aims to be “the world’s best employer” and “the safest workplace on Earth.”
He indicated he would continue supporting related efforts even after stepping down as chairman of the board.
- Global COVID-19 infection numbers (deaths) as of 4/17 4:00 PM, compiled by Johns Hopkins University: 139,950,000 worldwide (12,871 deaths)
U.S. 31,575,640 (935) India 14,526,609 (1,341) Brazil 13,824,255 (3,305) France 5,285,304 (331) Russia 4,631,336 (392) UK 1,398,903 (34)
Turkey 4,150,039 (289) Italy 3,842,079 (429) Spain 3,407,283 (99) Germany 3,134,108 (222) Poland 2,660,088 (596) Argentina 2,658,628 (159)
- Moves to restrict COVID-19 vaccination are beginning to appear.
Because some vaccines have reported cases of blood clots after administration, the U.S. paused vaccinations temporarily, and the U.K. restricted eligible recipients.
- Domestic COVID-19 cases in Japan: confirmed cases 530,830 (new cases +4,799 as of 8:30 PM on the 17th) Deaths 9,646 (+41)
Hokkaido 22,283 (+109) Tokyo 129,540 (+759) Kanagawa 50,651 (+247) Chiba 31,449 (+156) Saitama 35,282 (+9207)
Kyoto 10,806 (+92) Osaka 66,752 (+1,161) Hyōgo 25,337 (+541) Fukuoka 20,211 (+137) Aichi 30,009 (+230)
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