Arab News Japan

DUBAI: Yoshito Hori, founder and president of GLOBIS University, told Riyadh’s Future Investment Initiative (FII) on Tuesday that Japan is going through a very “exciting” time and will continue growing despite global uncertainties. 

Speaking at a panel titled ‘How is Patient Capital Settling After the Trade War?’, Hori began by highlighting the growing number of female officials in Japan to showcase the country’s growth. 

“We have the first-ever female prime minister, who met Trump today. We also have a female governor of Tokyo, who is speaking (at FII). We also have a female finance minister, (which) is exciting,” he said. 

He added that Japan has become a popular tourist destination within the last few years. In terms of economy, he shared that the Nikkei 225 crossed 50,000 for the first time on Monday. 

“At the same time, the average salary of startups is bigger than the average salary of big corporations,” he noted. 

“The culture has changed. Prime Minister TAKAICHI (Sanae) talked about growth. She will invest in technology and growth and that tells us that Japan is back. It’s so stable and exciting,” he added.

Sharing the panel with Hori is Chairman and CEO of Neuberger Berman George H. Walker, who shared that his company is adding new investors from Japan and the GCC region. 

“I think for global investors (Japan) is an exciting place to look. In (Japan and the GCC), we built equity teams recently and we are building fixed income teams,” Walker said. 

Cathie Wood, founder and CEO of ARK Invest, also told the panel that she is impressed by Japan’s growth. 

“I think what excited me about this region is the desire to innovate. I’m seeing it in other parts of the world, such as Japan. We are partly owned by a Japanese company, and I’ve always been struck by the innovative DNA in Japan.”