3/31/2020

JAPAN : FORTUNES -OLYMPICS- QUANDARY


JAPAN has huge financial incentives to delay a decision as long as possible, gambling that there will be a drastic change in the course of the coronavirus, which had killed nearly 39,000 people around the world.

An outright cancellation of the Games, which are scheduled to begin in late July, could be economically disastrous for a country already on the brink of recession.

Jun Saito, a senior research fellow at the Japan Center for Economic Research, said the country had invested between $32 billion and $41 billion in building competition venues and adding hotel capacity.

''The financial burden of these public companies who have invested in expectation of the Games is going to be very significant,'' Mr. Saito said.

JAPAN : As virus threatens Games, hundreds and hundreds of companies are stuck in a holding pattern.

Toshiya Fujita just wants somebody to make a decision already : Mr. Fujita, the managing director of a leather goods wholesaler in Tokyo, is trying to figure out how many Olympics key chains to order.

Like hundreds of business managers, in Japan, he is caught in will-they-or-won't they guessing game about whether the Tokyo Olympics will be staged this summer, as the coronavirus continues its deadly march around the globe.

An increasing number of athletes, experts and ordinary people in Japan are convinced that the Games cannot be held. But the Japanese organizers and the International Olympic Committee have steadfastly maintained that the show will go on., with the committee saying just recently ''there is no need for any drastic decisions at this stage.

The uncertainty has left a whole ecosystem surrounding the Games stuck in a holding pattern. Businesses as large as Coca Cola, Toyota, Samsung and Google, which are sponsoring the event, and as small as hotels, Airbnb operators, security companies and travel agents are simultaneously preparing for the Games while bracing for their possible cancellations.

Mr. Fujita's company, Moriya, is among them. ''If the Games are cancelled, we will end up having leftover products,'' he said. ''So we would appreciate it if we get some direction in March about whether the Games will be held or not.

The honor and serving of the latest global operational research on Japan's Olympic Games, continues. The World Students Society thanks authors Motoko Rich and Ben Dooley.

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Grace A Comment!