Wikipedia

Sojitz

Sojitz Corporation(Japanese:Song ngày kabushiki gaisha,Hepburn:Sōjitsu Kabushiki-gaisha)is asogo shosha(general trading company) based inTokyo,Japan.It is engaged in a wide range of businesses globally, including buying, selling, importing, and exporting goods, manufacturing and selling products, providing services, and planning and coordinatingprojects,inJapanand overseas. Sojitz alsoinvestsin various sectors and conducts financing activities. The broad range of sectors in which Sojitz operates includesautomobiles,energy,mineralresources,chemicals,foodstuff resources, agricultural and forestry resources, consumer goods, andindustrial parks.

Sojitz Corporation
Native name
Song ngày kabushiki gaisha
Sōjitsu kabushiki gaisha
Company typePublicKK
TYO:2768
IndustryConglomerate(Sogo shosha)
FoundedAugust 2004;20 years ago(2004-08)
HeadquartersChiyoda,Tokyo,Japan
Key people
Masayoshi Fujimoto, President & CEO
RevenueIncreaseJP¥4,006 billion (2016)
IncreaseJP¥36.5 billion (2016)
Number of employees
14,330 (2016)
WebsiteOfficial website

Sojitz was formed in 2004 by themergerofNissho Iwai Corporation(Ngày thương nham giếng kabushiki gaisha,Nisshō Iwai Kabushiki-gaisha)andNichimen Corporation(ニチメン kabushiki gaisha,Nichimen Kabushiki-gaisha).[1]The name "Sojitz" is derived from the names of Nissho Iwai and Nichimen, both of which include the character "Ngày"(sun)." Sojitz ", literally meaning" twin suns ", implies a merger of equals between the two companies. The corporate logo is a stylized version of the first character in its Japanese name.

History

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Nichimen

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Beginning around 1878, the Japanese government promoted the development ofcottonspinning as an initial means of developing modern industry in Japan in the wake of theMeiji Restoration.Japan's native raw cotton supply proved inadequate to meet demand, and there was only one Japanese importer of raw cotton at the time, making the industry highly reliant on foreign merchants. To improve this situation, a group of spinning companies establishedJapan Cotton Trading Co., Ltd.(Nhật Bản miên hoa kabushiki gaisha,Nippon Menka Kabushiki Kaisha)inOsakain 1892 under the leadership of Tsuneki Sano, a 38-year-old former government official.[2]

After theRusso-Japanese War,Nichimen expanded its business from importing. The company began cotton spinning operations in theKwantung Leased Territoryand established offices in China, Korea, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom to supply local markets. In 1910, Nichimen opened a subsidiary inFort Worth, Texasto enter the raw cotton trade in the United States.World War Istrained cotton supply in Europe, boosting Nichimen's international business further. In the late 1910s the company expanded into South America and Africa, trading in cotton as well as wool, food products, and machinery.

TheGreat Depressionharmed Nichimen's cotton business, spurring the company's diversification beyond cotton to trade in silk, rayon and other materials. DuringWorld War II,Nichimen was tapped by the Japanese military to manage production of flour, matches and starch. The company changed its name to Nichimen Enterprise (Nichimen Jitsugyo) in 1943 to reflect its more diverse business.[3]

The largestzaibatsutrading companies were dismantled after the war, giving Nichimen an early lead among thesogo shoshain the 1950s and a six percent share of Japanese foreign trade by 1958. Nichimen became closely affiliated with Osaka-basedSanwa Bankin 1955, which financed all of Nichimen's domestic business. Nichimen was not the main trading company for the Sanwakeiretsuas that position was already held by Iwai & Co. Nichimen Jitsugyo.[3]

By 1970, Nichimen was trading in steel, electronics, motor vehicles and fibers in addition to textiles. Nichimen served as the joint venture partner forNabiscowhen it began operations in Japan in the 1970s. Nichimen Co., Ltd. changed its name toNichimen Corporationin 1982. Nichimen, like othersogo shosha,was hit hard by the collapse of theJapanese asset price bubblein the early 1990s, and subsequently made a strategic shift from the "soft" businesses of lumber, food, and chemicals trading to the "hard" businesses of machinery, steel, and construction.[3]

Nissho Iwai

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Nissho Iwai was formed in 1968 by the merger of Nissho Company and Iwai Sangyo Company.[4]

Nissho Companywas founded inKobein 1902 asSuzuki & Company(ja: Linh mộc cửa hàng) under the leadership of Naokichi Kaneko(ja: Vàng thẳng cát) when died this company's predecessor shop's founder, Iwajiro Suzuki(ja: Linh mộc nham trị lang)(1837–1894). Suzuki was originally a sugar trading firm but later diversified into flour, steel, tobacco, beer, insurance, shipping and shipbuilding; it became the second Japanese member of theBaltic Exchangein London.Iwai & Company(ja: Nham giếng cửa hàng) was founded as a steel trading firm in 1901 and established a number of prominent group enterprises includingDaicel,Nisshin Steel, Tokuyama Soda,Kansai PaintandFuji Photo Film.It changed its name to Iwai Sangyo Company in 1943.[4]

Both Nissho and Iwai emerged as metals and machinery trading companies after World War II but were significantly smaller than the four largestsogo shoshacompetitors (Mitsubishi Corporation,Mitsui & Co.,ItochuandMarubeni). Iwai was poorly managed after the war and was on the brink of failure in the early 1960s, while Nissho was profitable and successfully expanding overseas. The Japanese government directed the merger of the two companies in 1968, forming the fifth largest trading company in Japan (falling back to sixth place in 1972 behindSumitomo Corporation).[5]Sanwa Bankplayed a role in the merger and the combined firm became the trading arm of theSanwa Groupkeiretsu.[6]

Nissho Iwai was involved in acorruption scandalin 1979 after it passed on a 500 million yen bribe fromMcDonnell Douglasto the director general of theJapan Defense Agencyin an attempt to influence the sale ofF-4 Phantomaircraft to theJapan Air Self-Defense Force.In the wake of the scandal, one Nissho Iwai executive committed suicide by jumping from the company's headquarters building. The scandal was uncovered only three years after a similar scandal involvingLockheedandMarubeniconspiring to bribe Prime MinisterKakuei Tanaka.[7]

In subsequent years, the company had a strong focus onliquefied natural gasandsteeltrading, as well as industrial project development.[5]

Merger

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Nichimen and Nissho Iwai consolidated on a holding company level in 2003 and consolidated their operating units in 2004, adopting theSojitzname at that time. The merged holding company,Sojitz Holdings,combined with the merged operating company,Sojitz Corporation,in 2005.[1]

Current operations

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The current headquarters of Sojitz Corporation, Iino Building inKasumigaseki,Chiyoda,Tokyo.

Today, the Sojitz Group consists of approximately 440subsidiariesandaffiliateslocated in Japan and throughout the world, and it is developing its wide-ranging general trading company operations in roughly 50 countries and regions across the globe.

Sojitz (through its subsidiarySojitz Aerospace Company) is the largest seller of commercial aircraft in Japan, as it acts as a sales agent for bothBoeingandBombardier Aerospace.It distributesMitsubishi MotorsandHyundai Motorsautomobiles in various countries, and also develops and operates power plants, industrial plants in various countries. In 2013 it received an order to develop a section of theWestern Dedicated Freight CorridorbetweenDelhiandMumbaiin India.[8]The Sojitz Aerospace Company also acts as Sojitz's primary arm for defense related business.

Sojitz has also invested in Hyundai Nishat, thePakistaniarm ofHyundai Motorsin partnership withNishat Group.

Sojitz owns oil and natural gas concessions in theNorth Sea,Gulf of Mexico,Qatar,Gabon,EgyptandBrazil.It owns theGregory coal mine[9]and most of the Minerva Coal Mine inAustraliaand distributesnuclear fuelin Japan forOrano.[10]

Its operations in the chemicals sector includemethanolproduction inIndonesia,baritemining inMexicoandindustrial salttrading in various markets worldwide.[11]In November 2010, it signed an agreement with the Australianrare earthsmining companyLynasto import $350 million worth of rare earth minerals from Lynas' mine inMount Weld,Australia.[12]

Its consumer business operations include trading in grains, feed, sugar, coffee, fish, wood and paper. It owns the Japanese rights to several consumer brands such asEastpakand McGregor.[13]

ADV Films acquisition

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In June 2006, Sojitz acquired a 20% stake inAmericananime distributorADV Films.This was done as a means of acquiring more titles in the Japanese market.[14]From this point on, virtually all titles that ADV acquired were under Sojitz's ownership. However, in January 2008, ADV mysteriously removed a large number of titles from their website.[15]All the titles removed were titles acquired since the Sojitz acquisition includingGurren Lagann,which had test disks sent out with dubbed episodes. As of May 2008,Gurren Lagannwas licensed byBandai Entertainment.ADV Films made booth appearances at theAnime Central 2008convention, but they canceled their planned panel.[16]In July 2008,Funimationannounced the acquisition of thirty of these titles.[17]

The titles removed from ADV's website are as follows:009-1,5 Centimeters per Second,Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy,both thefilmandtelevisionadaptions of theKeyvisual novelAir,Best Student Council,Blade of the Phantom Master,Comic Party Revolution,Coyote Ragtime Show,Devil May Cry,the 2006 live-action horror filmGhost Train,Guyver: The Bioboosted Armor,Innocent Venus,Jing King of Bandits: 7th Heaven,Jinki: Extend,the 2006 anime remake of yet anotherKeyvisual novel,Kanon,Kurau: Phantom Memory,Le Chevalier D'Eon,Magikano,Moeyo Ken,Moonlight Mile,Nerima Daikon Brothers,Pani Poni Dash!,Project Blue Earth SOS,Pumpkin Scissors,Red Garden,Tokyo Majin,UFO Princess Valkyrie,the first anime ofUtawarerumono,Venus vs. Virus,The Wallflower,Welcome to the NHK,andXenosaga.

References

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  1. ^ab"History".Sojitz Corporation.Retrieved22 April2014.
  2. ^"History of Nichimen Corporation".Sojitz Corporation.Retrieved7 October2024.
  3. ^abc"Nichimen Corporation History".International Directory of Company Histories, Vol. 24. St. James Press, 1999.Retrieved22 April2014.
  4. ^ab"History of Nisshoiwai".Sojitz Corporation.Retrieved7 October2024.
  5. ^ab"NISSHO IWAI K.K. History".International Directory of Company Histories, Vol. 1. St. James Press, 1988.Retrieved22 April2014.
  6. ^Suzuki, Shinichi (2006).The Japanese Main Bank System: A Transaction Cost Approach.pp. 108–109.ISBN9780542875380.
  7. ^Large, Stephen S. (1998).Shōwa Japan: 1973-1989.Taylor & Francis. p. 50.ISBN9780415143233.
  8. ^"Machinery Division"(PDF).Sojitz Corporation.Retrieved5 June2015.
  9. ^"BMA completes sale of Gregory Crinum Mine".BHP.BMA Media Release.
  10. ^"Energy & Metal Division"(PDF).Sojitz Corporation.Retrieved5 June2015.
  11. ^"Chemicals Division"(PDF).Sojitz Corporation.Retrieved5 June2015.
  12. ^Tabuchi, Hiroko(November 24, 2010)."Japanese Firm in Rare Earths Deal With Australian Miner".The New York Times.RetrievedNovember 3,2011.
  13. ^"Consumer Lifestyle Business Division"(PDF).Sojitz Corporation.Retrieved5 June2015.
  14. ^"ADV Teams up with Sojitz - News".Anime News Network. 2006-06-27.Retrieved2013-12-25.
  15. ^"ADV Films Removes Titles from Website - Update - News".Anime News Network. 2008-01-30.Retrieved2013-12-25.
  16. ^"Anime Central 2008".Anime News Network. 2008-05-20.Retrieved2013-12-25.
  17. ^"Your Comic Book, Fantasy, SciFi, Horror & Anime Source - Mania".animeondvd.Archived fromthe originalon July 11, 2008.RetrievedApril 14,2015.
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