Japan/the u.s./investment

TOKYO — For U.S. companies doing business in Asia, fast-growing China and India generate plenty of headlines and hype. For actual profits, neglected old Japan remains a better bet by far.

"In terms of profitability, Japan is the best-kept secret in the world," says Jesper Koll, chief economist at Merrill Lynch Japan Securities.

U.S. companies earned nearly $11 billion in Japan last year, more than double what they could muster in China ($3.3 billion) and India ($1.2 billion) combined, according to statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.usa today

中国は人口は多いが購買層が薄いとは聞いてはいましたが、日本の消費者をいったん獲得するとこっちのもの、てな感じだそうです。