著者

四方田 雅史

出版者

社会経済史学会

雑誌

社会経済史学 (ISSN:00380113)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.69, no.2, pp.169-188, 2003-07-25 (Released:2017-06-16)

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Prewar Japan exported imitation Panama hats, which were produced mainly in Taiwan and Okinawa. However, there were sharp differences between the institutions organizing economic transactions in each region. This paper analyzes the institutional differences, focusing mainly upon transaction patterns between merchants and producers, trade associations, export inspection systems, and institutions for improving production techniques. The first difference is that while producers in Okinawa were dominated by Japanese merchants with relatively long-term gains in mind, those in Taiwan gradually became independent of Japanese merchants and exported hats through Taiwanese branches in Kobe. Second, while short-term transactions were predominant in Taiwan because of frequent entries and exits by producers and merchants, long-term transactions were predominant in Okinawa. Third, while the short-term transactions in Taiwan led to short-sighted behavior, such as the adulteration of products and the weakening of trade associations, the long-term ones in Okinawa produced hats of improved quality, stronger trade association, and good producing skills. In conclusion, institutions in both Taiwan and Okinawa developed complementary relationships which led to contrasting institutional combinations, causing differences in performance. In addition, the implication is that the institutions adopted in Taiwan and Okinawa reflected different economic traditions in China and Japan respectively.