While the world looks at Japan and thinks that a recovery is underway, the reality is that up 25% of Japan's functioning (versus dormant) companies are instead tottering on the edge of insolvency.
The percentage of non-regular to full-time workers is now a record 28.75%, almost 18m people (there are 62m in the workforce), and this is not just a temporary trend.
Shock waves went through the Japanese share market last week after ratings of Sony and Panasonic, two of Japan's bedrock electronics manufacturing companies, have been cut to junk grade.
Over the last 3 months, the trend of fewer bankruptcies is gathering momentum and under normal circumstances one might might be forgiven for thinking that the economy is recovering.
In a seminal paper [1] from 1958, Franco Modigliani and Merton H Miller showed why investors should not care about whether firms were financed with debt or equity...
The past week has showed the dark side of media coverage and analysis of current events and a test on just how much information you stuff down the public's throat.