The Japanese reporting period for the national fiscal year, which ends March 31 and to which about 90% of Japanese companies adhere, is now in full swing, and the major electronics manufacturers have spokespeople on hand at this time of year prepared to answer any and all the economic and financial questions anybody cares to ask. One surprise may be that despite a rotten year, dragged down by unfavourable chip markets personal computers may have generated demand, but all the majors depend on consumer electronics as well – they mostly plan to increase investment. Fujitsu Ltd will increase group capital investment for electronic devicesincluding semiconductors to $865m this year from $570m last. Hitachi Ltd will raise group capital investment for semiconductors to $725m from $550m last year, and NEC, hurting particularly badly, will raise its investment less sharply, to $820m from $775m. Fujitsu’s planned investment includes $91m for its liquid crystal display plant, and Hitachi is also increasing investment in that area.It will also boost installation and production facilities for 16M-bit memory chips at its plant in Ibaragi prefecture, which set to begin output in 1994; it will also raise output of 16Ms at its Kofu plant in Yamanashi prefecture to 500,000 a month by the end of 1993 from the present 200,000. Fujitsu will also build a plant in Fukushima prefecture for its joint venture with Advanced Micro Devices Inc on Flash memory by the end of 1994. Toshiba Corp says that it will leave its group capital investment for semiconductors steady at last year’s $730.
