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Rising and setting suns - Japan's lessons for Germany, China and South Korea PDF

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R is in g a n d s e t tin g s u n s — J a p a n ’s le s s o n s fo r G e r m a n y , C h in a a n d S o u th K o r e a N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 4 Cover story Rising and setting suns— Japan’s lessons for Germany, China and South Korea It is fashionable to say Germany is heading down the path of post- bubble Japan. But what if the Japan to worry about is not the deflationary 1990s but the previous decade when golf club memberships swapped hands for millions of dollars? And just as there is a risk investors fail to apply the lessons of a rising sun to Germany, there is a danger that Japan’s post-bubble era is ignored by China and South Korea. Page 21 Konzept Innovation is one of the core values of Deutsche Bank. It helps us find sustainable solutions for our stakeholders and evolve our thinking about the future. This new magazine from Deutsche Editorial The world of economics and that extreme inequality hinders growth, but we finance arguably faces more do not know the level at which the negative unresolved questions and effects kick in. Finance and bankers are lightning Bank Research represents such unmet challenges than at rods in this debate, as we show in this issue. any time in the last hundred Hence Konzept aims to stimulate but is years. As part of Deutsche deliberately not dogmatic. We let others preach, innovation. It is a new way of Bank’s continuous effort to push the frontiers for example, that structural reforms are essential of research I asked our best and brightest around the world even though the impact from talent to break with consensus and write about reforms takes time (and time we may not have). delivering our best ideas to clients topics that help us understand what lies ahead. Just look at the historical examples of misery This is the first issue of what I hope you will find imposed in the name of sound economics. to be a fascinating as well as fun and easy-to- Winston Churchill taking the UK back onto the and the wider world. The format digest magazine. gold standard at an over-valued exchange rate in Our motivation is the difficulty in 1925 was a huge mistake. Likewise, policies post deciphering modern market economies. Indeed the Plaza (or Louvre) agreements in the 1980s is as accessible as the content is my own beloved profession failed to anticipate probably set Japan on its way to the lost decade. most of the big market dislocations over my That academic researchers have working life, from the Latin American debt found it hard to provide useful insights into the original. I look forward to reading crisis in 1980s through to the eurozone’s recent dynamics of modern economies has created an travails. Konzept does not have a crystal ball exciting opportunity for others to take up the Konzept regularly. either, but by pushing contributors to gaze challenge. And much of the best thinking on beyond their core disciplines we hope to deliver the crucially important issues of the day is now fresh insights and ideas. found within global hedge funds and investment Then again, we must acknowledge the banks. Indeed it makes sense that the unceasing impossibility of ever satisfactorily explaining the demand for economic and financial analysis dynamics of major macro economic variables. is met by commercial groups. Every day we But many of us involved in this magazine have appreciate first-hand the importance of investors toiled for decades in the vineyards of political making big calls, of institutions setting their economy and financial markets experiencing strategies and of policy makers implementing what works and what does not. Sometimes it is correct macro and regulatory policies. just a gut feeling – but it is hard to articulate this Finally I would like to extend my experience into predictive power. Hence macro special thanks to Guy Ashton for his outstanding economics becomes an exercise in persuasion. leadership of this initiative to draw out the best For example we know that quadrupling from Deutsche Bank Research. I hope you find the supply of money or gold, such as during Konzept essential reading. the Iberian plundering of the Inca Empire, raises prices. But we do not know how long David Folkerts-Landau this takes. Likewise our cover story compares Group Chief Economist the lessons of Japan to Germany, China and Member of the Group Executive Committee South Korea – but appreciates that outcomes and timings may be very different. We also know that deficit spending helps when there Anshu Jain is insufficient demand, but we never know the appetite of investors to hold more sovereign Co-Chief Executive Officer debt – a topic of relevance in Europe today and To send feedback, or to contact any of the authors, please get in touch via your usual Deutsche Bank one we reference in our piece about the bond Deutsche Bank representative, or write to conundrum. Similarly we can intuitively sense the team at [email protected]. Konzept Features Germany—lessons from a rising sun 21 China and South Korea— lessons from a setting sun 30 The contours of CoCo land 38 Articles Cyber insecurity 46 06 US capex—don’t be depressed 08 Love in a tropical climate 12 Ready for the robot revolution The big debate— 14 Age does not weary them 16 The bond conundrum— secular stagnation 54 ECB’s high grade squeeze 18 On your Marx—bankers vs politicians Financiers in literature— Columns 68 Book review—The Birth of Korean Cool written down 60 69 Ideas lab—secrets of investment success 70 Conference spy—oil and gas 71 Banking at the box office 6 Konzept Konzept 7 US capex— don’t be depressed Commentators are fond of blaming corporate But what is missing in both company and The second reason companies are seemingly America for skimping on capital expenditure national accounts is the fact that companies spending less is because they are investing despite record levels of cash and profits. are meeting their capex needs by spending differently. There has been a steady shift in Greedy executives prefer to spend shareholders’ relatively less. Firstly, what they are investing the composition of non-residential investment funds on pursuits to boost share prices such in is getting cheaper. The prices for most non- away from what is defined in the national as buybacks rather than investing for the long residential investment categories have been accounts as structures (mainly buildings) to term – or so the accusations go. Others point falling relative to broader measures of inflation computers, software, and intellectual property. the finger more directly and argue that a lack since the mid-1990s. While the general price Consequently, real non-residential investment of spending is responsible for America’s soggy level has risen by 45 per cent since 1995, excluding structures is now at a record high post-crisis economic recovery. But the critics industrial-related prices have gone up only relative to GDP. are wrong for two simple reasons: companies by 40 per cent and transportation prices by Again, relative levels of inflation are investing in different classes of assets 25 per cent. have distorted the picture. It looks bad that compared to the past, and the prices of those Meanwhile, equipment prices (including structures-related investment has fallen in real assets have been getting relatively cheap. technology and computer-related investment) terms from 6.2 per cent of GDP to 2.7 per cent Adjust for pricing and mix, and capex levels have actually fallen by a fifth over the past two since the early 1980s. But over the same period are near record highs. decades. Indeed, real (as opposed to nominal) intellectual property investment rose from So how is it that most people conclude non-residential investment as a proportion of one to four per cent of GDP. More important, that capital expenditure is at low levels? Well, GDP is near an all time high of 13 per cent. This however, is that the structures category has for a start the aggregate accounts of America’s is in line with the crazy dot.com years and with experienced significant inflation since 1995 with largest non-financial companies are quite clear 2008 levels when rising commodity and oil prices rising 230 per cent. It is hardly surprising that capex as a percentage of earnings before prices drove a surge in natural resources-related that companies have been substituting it with interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation capital expenditure. cheaper and presumably more productive has been declining steadily over the past 30 capex. Companies are required to expense years. During the 1990s spending by listed some of this new capex under US accounting corporates ran at around 40 to 45 per cent of rules, which further depresses capex as ebitda. Following the dot.com bust in 2000 reported in company financials. this dropped to about 35 per cent. But the So corporate America’s capital 45% Rise in the general percentage has been even lower than that since expenditure story is really a positive one. But price level since 1995 the financial crisis. Indeed, excluding the energy that is very different from saying that private sector, which has been investing heavily in the investment overall – which includes both shale oil boom, capex to ebitda has recently residential and non-residential investment – been running below 30 per cent. is not depressed. Far from it. Published accounting data, however, The truth is that most of the shortfall provide little by way of additional detail to in investment these days is due to low further analyse this troubling trend. So it makes residential investment, not capex. As a 40% Industrial-related prices sense to look at the big picture investment percentage of GDP, residential investment is have gone up only by 40% trends in the national economic accounts nearly two percentage points below the long- produced by the US Bureau of Economic term average of about five per cent. Indeed if Analysis. The best proxy for corporate capex in the housing sector were to return to normal the national accounts is nominal non-residential tomorrow, America’s economy could soon investment. And this is indeed depressed as a be humming along at four per cent or more – percentage of gross domestic product. From instead of the 2.5 per cent currently. Hence the early 1980s to 2008, investment to GDP any improvement in investment and GDP The structures category was mostly in the 13 to 14 per cent range. 230% has experienced significant growth will need to come from the residential Then following the financial crisis it sank to inflation since 1995 with sector primarily. Anyone looking to corporate less than 11 per cent of nominal GDP and has prices rising 230 per cent capex to help lead the next surge may find John Tierney since struggled back to about 13 per cent. they have a long wait. 8 Konzept Konzept 9 Love in a tropical climate There has been a big change in the way Big meantime the WHO has determined that the and capacity. The pair’s dedicated research Pharma has behaved over the last decade current Ebola outbreak is an “extraordinary and development spend substantially exceeds or so. GlaxoSmithKline, Sanofi, Novartis and event” so it is ethical to offer unregistered that of their peers. Novartis deserves particular others have dramatically increased the help drugs and vaccines, despite unproven clinical credit for its central role in the supply of anti- they provide, largely for free, to some of the profiles. The tragedy is that for many other malarial drugs in Africa and its Novartis Malaria world’s poorest people in some of the world’s tropical diseases effective treatment is available Initiative access program. Meanwhile, Bayer poorest nations. In the past, aid in combating but inadequate healthcare access and poverty and Roche have lower levels of investment tropical disease from Big Pharma involved prevent the most vulnerable from benefiting. but play key roles in the provision of drugs for simply handing over bulk supplies of relatively Big Pharma’s activities in this area sleeping sickness and HIV/Aids respectively. basic, usually off-patent drugs. Nowadays, by look philanthropic. But is this the only In the short term the most engaged contrast, some of the leading pharmaceutical motivation? The industry is also making a companies may benefit from attracting the companies are going a lot further. They are strategic long-term investment in building interest of investors looking for socially donating newly developed products, improving brand, goodwill and distribution infrastructure responsible enterprises. The full payoff, access to their medicines and vaccines through with the countries, governments and customers however, may take years, even decades, to heavily discounted or even zero pricing, waiving of tomorrow. The tropics (comprising 144 materialise. But those companies that lead patent rights to allow local manufacture, nations and territories) produce around a fifth the way with this apparently philanthropic collaborating in research, and investing in the of the world’s gross domestic product and investment surely stand to reap significant healthcare infrastructure of affected countries. are currently home to more than 40 per cent rewards. They will know and understand Revenues are minimal and are far outweighed of the world’s population, reaching 50 per local culture, they will have built relationships by the costs. GlaxoSmithKline, for example, cent by 2050. While many of those blighted with local authorities and they will have a donated drugs last year with a wholesale value by tropical diseases are citizens of the world’s stake in the healthcare infrastructure they of over £500m and spent in the region of £100m poorest nations today, economic development are developing. Curiously, the companies on research into tropical disease. in the coming decades is likely to mean these themselves are not making much of their The catalyst for change was the countries will constitute the pharmaceutical socially responsible credentials, or explaining World Health Organisation. In 2010 it industry’s customers of the future. the longer term payoff story to their investors. published a report on neglected tropical To this end many pharmaceutical But it seems that this investment is a whole diseases setting out specific targets for the companies routinely provide services and lot smarter than it appears at first sight. eradication of certain diseases and some skills that extend well beyond the basic degree of control of the remainder. The report provision of medicines, such as training led to the landmark London Declaration in doctors and nurses, participating in health 2012 in which the pharmaceutical industry, education campaigns, improving supply governmental and non-governmental chain logistics (a major issue for distant rural organisations, notably the Gates Foundation – communities), researching and developing new a major driving force – and the WHO all joined medicines and vaccines on a not-for-profit basis forces to tackle these diseases. and foregoing or pooling intellectual property There is undeniably a moral and protection so that local manufacturers can humanitarian imperative to relieve the burden produce critically needed drugs. of tropical diseases. The WHO estimates that GlaxoSmithKline, Sanofi and Novartis 1.2bn people annually are at high risk of malaria have shown outstanding commitment to (mainly in sub-Saharan Africa) while 1.4bn are tropical diseases. GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi affected by the neglected tropical diseases. in particular have highly pro-active, industry- The latter include dengue fever, which is fast leading approaches as well as a broad range of Mark Clark, becoming the most prevalent threat. This year relevant drugs and vaccines (they jointly lead has also seen a devastating and unprecedented in the supply of vaccines for the developing Tim Race, outbreak of Ebola virus infection in Africa. world). Each has dedicated market access units If you are interested in more details, please go to gmr.db.com or contact us for our in-depth Richard Parkes Concerted international efforts are underway for the poorest nations and multiple support report “Tropical diseases; social responsibility, to develop a treatment or vaccine for it. In the programs to improve health education, training neglected market”. 10 Konzept Konzept 11 12 Konzept Konzept 13 Ready for the robots. Japan holds more patents in this space than any other country and has a competitive robot revolution edge in the key areas of advanced sensors and small motors. Companies such as Sony and Panasonic may have lost their crowns to Apple and Samsung years ago but in robots Japan rules like it is the 1980s all over again. Domestic production by industrial robots has shot up over the past two years after grinding higher for the preceding three decades. It will accelerate further as relaxed safety regulations allow for broader workplace Smartphones have transformed our lives in adoption and improvements make robots robots are being rolled out to do everything the past decade and already feel old-hat. capable of performing a wider range of jobs. from assisting in the cleanup of Fukushima to Soon, though, you may not be able to turn Fanuc, the country’s biggest company in this helping the elderly and aiding in the provision around without bumping into a human- industry, is developing new sensitive robots of nursing care. Already Cyberdyne rents out sized robot. Manufacturers are finally hitting that can work safely with their human Hybrid Assistive Limb suits to assist people with a sweet spot where robotics technology colleagues. Kawada’s Nextage robot comes walking difficulties and in 2016 Panasonic will is sufficiently advanced and cheap to be on wheels so it can be moved around easily, start selling a $9,000 competitor with sensors adopted en masse. The robot age will demand increasing its versatility dramatically. Nextage that detect when wearers are attempting to huge social adjustments as well as creating has a head with 3D vision, a torso and two stand or sit up, easing the load on their upper tremendous investment opportunities. arms which enable it to pick up soft sheets and body or knees. And others are working on more Japan is the vanguard. The country’s transparent objects. Mitsubishi Electric has flexible ‘power suits’ that incorporate artificial focus on incremental efficiency gains sold 10,000 units of a model that handles small muscle fibres into clothing. and higher-end manufacturing, driven by components in home appliance assembly lines. Meanwhile the other end of the its shortage of cheap labour and hitherto Of course other countries do not spectrum has been staked out by billionaire relentlessly appreciating currency, have made want to be left behind. The South Korean entrepreneur Masayoshi Son, founder and chief it the world’s biggest market for industrial government, for example, has stumped up more executive of SoftBank. In June he introduced than a billion dollars to support the country’s Pepper to the world – a child-size friendly robot industry which at the moment is heavily android featuring cloud-based emotional orientated towards shipbuilding and auto intelligence. Each machine learns from the manufacturing. Medical equipment producer experiences of its clones. He follows Honda’s Curexo now sells Robodoc, which performs long line of experimental Asimo humanoids orthopaedic surgeries, while the Samsung and Sony’s Aibo dogs. Pepper is already on Group has developed a machine-gun-toting and duty meeting customers and gathering data grenade-launching sentry robot. The SGR-A1 at Softbank’s flagship Omotesando store. has been tested along the demilitarised zone Sales to the general public are due to begin on the North Korean border. next year – first in Japan and then in the US, China, faced with its own demographic priced around $2,000. issues, is also catching up fast. Mainland sales While many countries are scrambling of industrial robots numbered around 4,500 to establish their own robotic ambitions in 2005 but are projected to hit 340,000 in Japan seems to have a distinct advantage for 2015 – putting the country on a par with Japan now: its naturally open and positive social in absolute terms. There is still a long way to attitude towards such technologies. You can go, however. A ratio of 23 robots to 10,000 experience it at the wild robot restaurant industrial workers still leaves China with only a in Shinjuku, famously fitted out at cost of tenth of Japan’s penetration. $135m. Or at Tokyo’s Miraikan museum, which Nor will Japan stand still. Prime features disturbingly realistic woman and child Minister Abe, who chairs a committee on the (Otonaroid and Kodomoroid) robots that have Realisation of a Robot Revolution, recently said silicon skin and artificial muscles, as well as he aims to double the size of the market for a minimalist Telenoid doll that facilitates industrial robots to $11bn per year by 2020. surrogate communication. This is not just a production-side story, though. Indeed, by the time the 2020 Tokyo The market for service robots is projected to Olympics roll around, spectators stand a good rise twenty-fold to the same size as the market chance of being guided by a female droid for industrial robots over the same period. named Aiko Chihira developed by Toshiba. This is about much more than The robot revolution is well under way. automated vacuum cleaners – cute as they James Malcolm are. At one end of the spectrum exoskeletal 14 Konzept Konzept 15 Age does not weary them The rapid greying of the world’s population over their younger counterparts.2 Older workers, return to university and completely change is the subject of many newspaper columns it seems, are more than able to leverage their professions. Meanwhile, younger people need and scholarly articles. Readers are left with skills and experience in the labour market. to recognise that they will have to work a lot images of countries weighed down by retirees, Another study by Dr Burtless shows harder to keep up with their grandparents. underfunded pension plans and medical that education is a key factor that influences systems on the verge of collapsing under the the labour market participation rates of workers exponential increase of ageing invalids kept in the 62 to 74 year old age group. Two- alive by expensive drugs. While economies thirds of older American men with doctoral may well be hurt by a lack of younger workers, or professional degrees were still working and health systems will indeed come under compared to just one-third of high school In Japan, the proportion of strain in ageing societies, recent studies graduates. For women the proportion was 40% over-60s is due to rise from highlight the need to radically change our half versus one-quarter.3 a third of the population to mental image of senior citizens. While older workers are holding their 40 per cent by 2040. It is true that ageing is already quite own in white collar roles, one may be tempted advanced in a number of developed countries. to think that younger workers have a big In Japan, for example, the proportion of over advantage in physically demanding blue collar 60s is due to rise from a third of the population jobs. The Japanese fishing industry for one to 40 per cent by 2040. The ratio will be similar displays a contradictory trend. According to Over a third of Japanese for Germany by then, too. Developing countries government statistics, over a third of Japanese 13% fishermen are over 65 are generally younger but some are ageing fast fishermen are over 65 while 13 per cent are even while 13 per cent are enough to catch up soon with the developed over 75. In contrast, 15 to 24 year olds make even over 75 world. Estimates for 25 years from now show up only three per cent of fishermen. Not only the over 60s accounting for 30 and 40 per cent have older workers used skill and machinery to of the Chinese and South Korean population stay in business, younger workers seem to be respectively – higher than the US in both cases. daunted by the physical rigours of the work.4 But people are living longer because The unwillingness of younger workers to take they are healthier. This implies they can remain up this physically demanding job is causing socially and economically active for much serious worries about the future of the fishing longer. Indeed, it appears that today’s senior industry in Japan. citizens can give the young a run for their So it is wrong for governments, policy money. A survey of 20 developed countries makers and companies to view ageing societies by Gary Burtless and Barry Bosworth of The as full of unproductive retirees and medical Brookings Institution found that despite the invalids. Senior citizens are increasingly both crisis, workforce participation rates of 60 to 64 willing and capable of participating formally in year olds rose on average by 1.5 percentage the workforce. And this is before accounting points a year between 2007 and 2012.1 This for their significant contributions in voluntary was accompanied by a significant increase in community service and other activities. participation by those in their late 60s and early Hence societies will need to change in 70s. Moreover the rise in participation rates many ways to accommodate these trends. For appears to be accelerating. instance, rather than build ever more retirement 1 I mpact of the Great Recession on Retirement Trends in Industrialized Countries, Brookings, by Gary Why is this happening? Are older homes, urban design will have to adapt to the Burtless & Barry Bosworth, November 2013. workers somehow clinging to jobs by accepting needs of senior citizens who wish to continue 2 I s an Aging Workforce Less Productive?, The lower pay? Far from it. The 2011 data from the to work. Similarly, the education system has Brookings Institute, by Gary Burtless, June 2013. 3 C an educational attainment explain the rise in US shows that men aged between 60 and 74 to become friendlier to older students wanting labour force participation at older ages?, Centre enjoyed a 22 per cent premium in hourly pay to upgrade their skills. Given that people will for Retirement Research, Boston College, by Gary over those aged between 25 and 59. Similarly, routinely work into their 70s, it will probably Burtless, September 2013. Sanjeev Sanyal 4 P opulation of Fishermen Hit by Earthquake, Aging, older women enjoyed a premium of 10 per cent be common for workers in their 40s or 50s to Japan Real Time, by Jun Hongo, September 2014. 16 Konzept Konzept 17 The bond conundrum— ECB’s high grade squeeze While everyone rightly or wrongly seems to peripheral countries’ bonds instead. be waiting for the European Central Bank to What is more, if volumes are light start buying government bonds as a form then price signals are likely to be distorted by of quantitative easing, there is an important insufficient supply. This has implications for question to ask: who is the ECB going to economic analysis. For instance, Japanese rates buy them from? were never affected by tight supply dynamics, Take triple-A rated debt for example. so likening them to current low eurozone Foreign exchange reserve managers at the triple-A yields would be misleading. world’s central banks are unlikely to offer their t m Meanwhile for the ECB the implication holdings for sale to the ECB in any size. The h is twofold. First, large scale government bond reason is that when eurozone interest rates purchases need to be designed to take into were cut to negative levels back in June the gdo account the limited availability of the highest rate was also applied to cash held at the ECB r ltinr rated bonds to buy. Second, current market bThy ecseen btraanl kbsa nwkisll fnrootm w oauntts tido es ethlle s eaufer,o lziqounied., oeueaf linevflealtsio mn arya taelsre aardey c boerr edliastteodrt ewdi.t hA ns obmreiankael vyeienld euro-denominated assets to the ECB in return fraw s levels, the famously low five year-five year foourt coafs ehu wroisth i sn neogta tainve o ipnttieorne sats. Ait nwdo suwldi tlcikheinlyg s aefrdsd foof rQwEa rtdh arant teo m thaey uonwdee rmlyoinreg tcoh eaxnpgeec itna ttihoen s negate the purpose of accumulating foreign iy e n outlook for inflation. So the decline in market- exchange reserves in the first place – that is, h d n implied inflation expectations – cited by the the relevant country’s domestic currency e d o ECB as a reason to engage in asset purchases – would appreciate. tha nobs. may actually be due to expectations of QE. managemSiemnitl amrlayn, dfuanteds m aaren augnelirkse lwy ittoh bpea sasbivlee allTo ub e Bgoovthe rinmmpelincta tbioonnsd ss uwgigll ebset tmhoatr eb udyiffiincgu lt – or willing to sell their assets (however rated) ri and perhaps less warranted – than many in ealiltohcear.t iBoenisn go fo tbhleigire bde tnoc mhmatacrhk ,t hthee cyo huanvtery t o f r.ntgeetr the market think. hold on to the underlying securities. oa nnkin So it is important to know how much e iiosu of the triple-A rated sector in the eurozone is t de freely tradeable. This requires a comprehensive ncl zio picture of bond ownership. And the reality ebor is that less than 40 per cent of the eurozone ois c rt c triple-A market appears to be freely tradeable fuh – that is, not held by sticky investors such as piro l iacpnteed nrce tecx nfe ottnrrrtaa tclih nkbe eJa Aranspmk aasen.n rdT.i c hfaiosnr e cmxo marerpkseaetrr evasen wdm iaatlhnm a5og0se tpr s9e 0r nd ors t foon A eeigera is clear. TThheey e anrde palominots ot ff oarllc tehdis i nfotor ian vdeesfatourlst estostie-wph position of being underweight triple-A eurozone e i r bonds and overweight riskier bonds from e mslei p r peripheral countries. The lack of availability v Alexander Düring oufn dcoerrew beiognhdt sp aots riteioasno. nAanbdl ein pvreicsetosr fso prcuet sc tahsihs Thnalporiovpe Itfo y gomu ra.dreb .icnotemre osrt ecdo nint amcto ures dfoert aoiulsr, ipnl-edaespet hg o that cannot go into core country bonds into i t report “The Bund Conundrum”.

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Innovation is one of the core values of Likewise our cover story compares the lessons of . countries will constitute the pharmaceutical . to 40 per cent by 2040. to isolate reality from apocryphal tales of greed and excess. Yes,.
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