Kawari: How Japan's Economic and Cultural Transformation Will Alter the Balance of Power Among Nations

Kawari, which means "change" in Japanese, is a fitting (albeit understated) way to describe the far-reaching pecuniary and societal metamorphosis now underway in that country. Milton Ezrati, an international asset manager as well as an expert on Japan's finance, business, and politics, believes this extensive shift eventually will have wide-ranging effects around the globe. But unlike similarly dramatic upheavals in the 19th century and after World War II that stemmed largely from external threats to Japanese security, Ezrati contends, "this one will come from the more impersonal forces of her maturing economy, the globalization of economic and financial arrangements, and the rapid and relentless aging of her population." Japan will subsequently "gain stature on the world stage," he suggests, and "go from the nation that owned much but influenced little, to a nation that owns even more and influences a great deal."

In Kawari: How Japan's Economic and Cultural Transformation Will Alter the Balance of Power Among Nations, Ezrati fully examines this ongoing evolution from a Japanese perspective and explores the myriad ways that commercial affairs, government operations, and the population itself will likely be reshaped as the nation and surrounding region pull out of their current financial crisis. --Howard Rothman