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Oceangoing shipping is subject to international competition with foreign
shipping interests, however, the international competition power of Japanese
vessels has conspicuously dropped due to currency nuctuation and soaring of
various costs centered around labour cost in the recent years. Although all
of the shipping enterprises are adopting measures such as jumboising vessel
type, improving rate of operation, promotion of rationalization, etc., it is
still of high cost when comparing with foreign vessels which has boarded sailor
of developing nations with low standard of pay and it is deemed that the difference
is ever expanding. Due to this, the trend of chartering low cost foreign vessels
is getting stronger centered around small and medium type vessels in which the
ratio occupied by labour cost on total cost is generally high.
Admit such circumstances, a report was made from the Shipping and Shipbuilding
Rationalization Council in December, 1974 on the oceangoing shipping policy
after the fiscal year of 1975 since the current oceangoing shipping policy was
to terminate with the fiscal year of 1974. According to this report, it states
that it is necessary to compose the merchant fleet of Japan centered around
Japanese flag vessels from the standpoints of securement of stabilized transport
means on trade which comprises the basis of national living and national economy
of Japan, improvement of invisible trade, employment stabilization of mariners,
etc.; and to make continued existence of the planned shipbuilding system which
had been conventionally implemented for promoting construction of Japanese vessels,
and upon taking into consideration the ship-owner's burden interests in the
said system, the aid conditions for construction of own vessels by various advanced
shipping nations and export vessel deferred payment conditions of Japan, it
would be sui.table to adopt measures and make it into a degree worthy of expediting
construction of Japanese vessels.
In response to this, the Japanese Government decided to enforce policies
conforming to the aim of the report by setting the immediate target on oceangoing
shipping policy after the fiscal year of 1975 in consolidating the enterprise
environment so that the shipping enterprises can replete their enterprise strength
over a prolonged period as well as securing the construction setup of Japanese
vessels, not to perform interest supply as conventionally performed on vessels
which are to be newly constructed in the future, to raise the financing ratio
of the Treasury loans by the Japan Development. Bank and extend the redemption
term. Moreover, on future construction volume, it is expressed in the above
mentioned report to the effect that it would be suitable to lay the target at
building about 12,000,000 gross tons to 13,000,000 gross tons of Japanese vessels
during the 5 year period from the fiscal year of 1975 up to the fiscal year
of 1979.
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