Few Japan firms take steps toward economic security, government paper finds

Survey Reveals Limited Adoption of Economic Security Measures by Japanese Companies A government white paper released by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on October 15, 2024, found that only 29.8 percent of 2,847 surveyed Japanese firms had implemented concrete measures to strengthen economic security under the 2022 Economic Security Promotion Act. The remaining 70.2 percent reported either no actions or only preliminary discussions, with larger companies showing higher rates of progress than smaller ones.

Survey Scope and Company Differences

The METI paper, titled “Economic Security Measures in Japanese Industry 2024,” covered 12 sectors and highlighted differences by firm size. Companies with annual revenue above 100 billion yen recorded a 41 percent implementation rate. Small and medium-sized enterprises reached 22 percent. Actions included dual-sourcing critical components and third-party audits of information systems.

Sector-Specific Results

Electronics and automotive sectors showed the widest gaps in progress. In semiconductors and electronic components, 34 percent of firms had diversified suppliers beyond single-country dependence, shifting mainly from China to Vietnam, Malaysia, and domestic sources. Across all respondents, 27 percent had adopted multi-factor authentication on supply-chain platforms or conducted annual penetration testing.

Manufacturing Vulnerabilities

Among the 847 manufacturing firms included in the survey, 62 percent still depended on a single overseas source for at least one rare-earth or specialty chemical input. Only 19 percent had established formal contracts with alternative suppliers that included force-majeure clauses for geopolitical disruptions.

By Kenji Tanaka, Staff Writer