TOKYO (Reuters) - Here is a selection of quotes from the Reuters Japan Investment Summit on Tuesday:
HIKARI IMAI, CEO & PRESIDENT, JAPAN M&A ADVISORY FIRM RECOF
CORP:
"In Japan the market mechanism doesn't work. In other words natural selection or survival of the fittest doesn't work in Japan. Therefore .... failures will remain alive and then they participate in a price war so that no one can be profitable.
"If the market mechanism worked in Japan failures should go out of the market, and then the survivors can get a reasonable level of profit. That doesn't work. That's the fundamental problem."
HIROAKI NIIHARA, DIRECTOR, MINISTRY OF ECONOMY, TRADE &
INDUSTRY:
"British (takeover) rules are not known in Japan. We need to get more familiar with them.
"If an investor owns more than 30 percent in the company, this group can control the company in a way it wants and that could hurt the interests of other shareholders.
"I expect very strong resistance (from institutional investors to the proposal).
"The concept of independent directors doesn't exist."
ROBERT MORRICE, CHAIRMAN & CEO ASIA PACIFIC, BARCLAYS PLC
(BARC.L: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz):
"We have the same ambition in Japan as we have everywhere else, slightly different because there are strong domestic competitors here. We want to be one of the top three foreign banks in Japan, which would give us a springboard to be one of the top five overall.
"Our experience over the last seven or eight years has given us a good insight into how to incrementally grow the business in Japan. You have to be patient, focused and not get ahead of yourself."
JUN FRANK, DIRECTOR OF ASIAN PROXY RESEARCH, GLASS LEWIS: Continued...
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