As the world obsesses over the narrative of China’s meteoric rise, one question arises: have we underestimated Japan’s quiet reinvention?
China, with its gravity-defying growth rate of 9% per year, is the protagonist of a globalization that, frankly, is outdated. But is China really the ultimate success story? Looking back in history, China simply reproduces patterns from ancient dynasties. Xi Jinping acknowledges a cyclical pattern and warns of an imminent ‘storm of the century’. Despite its rapid growth, the Chinese giant is now at a crossroads, facing debt problems reminiscent of Japan’s in the 1990s. The world is worried about inflation, but China is stuck in deflation.
Now the world is in turmoil. The old rules of globalization are crumbling, and in the midst of this chaos, Japan quietly reemerges, poised to challenge Chinese hegemony. Because? The reason is simple: robotics and automation. At a time when competitive advantages are no longer based on cheap labor but on technological innovations, Japan is at the forefront of its history of invention.
The indicator we should all be paying attention to is not simply the performance of the Hang Seng Index versus the Nikkei, but its disruptive potential. Since 2013, betting on Japan has won you.
Japan isn’t just watching; it’s acting. With its “Society 5.0” vision, Japan is shaping the future: energy-self-sufficient cities powered by AI and the Internet of Things. While other countries are mired in the politics of the past, Japan is forging a new narrative for the 21st century.
In short, while everyone watched the Chinese king in this Asian chess game, the samurai knight made his silent and strategic move. And maybe, just maybe, he’s ready to checkmate.
