The Review Of Japanese Textile Industry In Shanghai Before World War Ⅱ

Pursuing for excess profit but restricted by small domestic market, since the signing of the "Treaty of Shimonoseki", the Japanese cotton textile merchants desired to invest in China. However, conservative estimation of the Chinese situation made the Japanese cotton textile entrepreneurs had limited attempt on it. The first attempt was made by Japanese merchant Kawamura Rihee who had set up a cotton mill in Shanghai,1911.Followed by more and more Japanese owned cotton factories, Shanghai had become the most concentrated area of Japanese cotton textile entrepreneurs before the Second World War. After 1925, the Japanese cotton textile enterprises in Shanghai had formed into eight systems. In the same period, the Chinese national textile industry also had grown in Shanghai. In the fierce competition with Chinese national textile industry, the Japanese cotton textile enterprises prevailed in the aspects of the means of production, the level of production technology, sales channels, production efficiency, human resources, the level of capital and accounting system. These advantages contributed to the overwhelming business advantage of the Japanese cotton textile enterprises. As the national crisis became deeper in China during the Twenties and Thirties in 20th Century, the Japanese cotton textile enterprises'business operating were trapped into tremendous difficulties due to the Chinese National Patriotic Movement, especially in the May 30th Movement and Boycott of Japanese goods in 1931-1932. In this Period the Shanghai Japanese cotton textile enterprises'had been blown hardly by poor sales, overstorage, marketing difficulties and no purchase. Though the products'quality and price were less competitive, benefited from the boycott of Japanese goods, Chinese national textile industry had gradually developed. Encountered with the big challenge of the Chinese national textile industry and the public boycott of Japanese goods in Shanghai, the Japanese cotton textile enterprises adopted flexible strategies in response to the situation , made the losses to a minimum lever and steadily became stronger. To the whole pre-war, Japanese cotton textile enterprises'power exceeded the Strength of Chinese national textile industry and British textile industry and fully established its dominant position in Shanghai.