Nuclear Disaster in Japan
Submitted by an environmentally conscious drifter on May 9, 2012 - 1:43am.
My heart goes out to
the people of Japan that went through this, and I hope that they find a
way to make their economy thrive again.
As most people are aware,
March 2011 was a very difficult month for the country and people of
Japan. They had a very dangerous 9.0 earthquake, followed by a
devastating tsunami (or was it the other way around?). At any rate,
these events really caused a lot of confusion and difficulty within the
country of Japan. We all hope that they will come back and rebuild their
country very soon.
Not even mentioned in the
above article is the fact that Japan also had a nuclear disaster during
this same period. This is quite a lot to overcome all at once.
I cannot help but looking
at the Japanese earthquake from a business perspective. As Japan
recovers from this tragedy and slowly begins to piece the coastal cities
hardest hit back together, the ramifications only glimpsed at the
beginning of the quake now become far clearer.
Many of the major
businesses in Japan had to make major adjustments. Some of the car
manufacturers actually took a large percentage of their production
offline, since they were unable to obtain parts from several of their
suppliers who were damaged in these events. The same situation was
repeated in many different companies. In fact, there were even a number
of foreign businesses that were greatly damaged in terms of their supply
chains. Recovery will likely mean either developing or finding new
sources, or retooling already existing systems or plants to create the
missing parts.
Not that I enjoy being
callous or taking advantage of misfortune, but there was also a lot of
money to be made in the aftermath of these tragedies. The stock market
almost immediately devalued many Japanese stocks. A smart investor like
me would have easily realized that Japan is a very resilient nation and
they have an incredible history of battling back after misfortune and
making things even better than before. I had no doubt that the Japanese
stocks would come back. Anyone who was able to get involved in almost
any Japanese company during this time was richly rewarded.
I would prefer to think
of this as betting on the will and commitment of the Japanese people and
their industry instead of taking advantage of misfortune. They have
most certainly not disappointed or let down my high expectations. Right
now, not long after these tragic events, Japan is open for tourism and
investment. Things still have some ways to go, but for the most people,
life and business is returning to normal.
Even the UN has praised
Japan on her recovery effort and the progress that has been made. This
is especially true for their efforts aimed at improving nuclear safety.
They are processing over 460 tons of waste every day and much of the
usable material is being recycled for use in new buildings.