Mark Firemoon retuiteado
🇯🇵 Japan was absolutely unstoppable in the 1980s
Walkmans, VHS players, Sony TVs, and Honda cars were everywhere. Japan had become the world’s factory. The US was in panic mode — smashing Japanese cars, slapping tariffs, and starting trade wars. Sound familiar?
Here’s the full story.
After WWII, America deliberately flooded Japan with technology and patents to create a strong ally against communism. Japan didn’t just copy it — they refined and improved everything. Soon their products were cheaper, higher quality, and dominating global markets.
By the mid-80s, Japanese carmakers were eating into Detroit’s lunch. Reagan was furious. Even Trump was publicly complaining that Japan wasn’t buying enough American goods.
Then came the Plaza Accord of 1985.
The US, Europe, and Japan agreed to weaken the dollar and strengthen the yen. It worked — but too well. Japanese exports suddenly became expensive. Money poured into Japan, inflating a massive bubble in stocks and real estate. Japan started buying Hollywood studios and flaunting its wealth.
Then the bubble burst.
What followed was decades of stagnation. “Zombie companies” were kept alive on cheap government credit. Innovation dried up. Apple, Microsoft, and Samsung rose while Japan faded.
China watched closely, copied the model — but made sure to keep control of its currency.
History doesn’t repeat, but it sure rhymes.
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