In December 2011, JBIC released the Survey Report on Overseas Business Operations by Japanese Manufacturing Companies: Results of the JBIC FY2011 Survey-Outlook for Japanese Foreign Direct Investment. The survey's objective was to identify current trends and challenges of the overseas operations of Japanese manufacturing companies, as well as those companies' outlook for the future. This latest survey was the 23rd in an annual series that began in 1989.

Japanese manufacturers, including mid-tier firms and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are speeding up efforts to strengthen their overseas operations, and are expected to continue expanding their operations to take advantage of the rapid growth in overseas markets. Their evaluations of their FY2010 overseas business performance suggests that their operations in ASEAN countries, especially Thailand and Indonesia, are making sound progress. The countries they believe are especially promising for business development are, in order, China, India, Indonesia and other ASEAN countries, and Brazil.^*

This special feature looks at various aspects of the overseas business trends of Japanese companies, as revealed by the survey questionnaire.