IESET.
Movements·japan_post_war_meti_industrial_policy_1952_1975

Japan MITI-led industrial policy and high-growth era

JPN·1952 – 1975·Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) dominance from 1955; 1955 System
Leaders: Hayato Ikeda (PM 1960-1964; Income Doubling Plan) · Eisaku Satō (PM 1964-1972) · Kakuei Tanaka (PM 1972-1974) · MITI vice-ministers (Shigeru Sahashi and successors) · Bank of Japan governors under MoF window guidance
positionsdevelopmentalisminstitutionalismaustrian

Doctrine — stated goals and content

Developmental-state industrial policy combining selective credit allocation, import protection during learning phase, and export promotion, coordinated primarily through the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI, founded 1949) and the Ministry of Finance. Post-San Francisco Treaty 1952 sovereignty restored; Dodge Line 1949 had already imposed fiscal discipline and 360-yen peg. Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Control Law (1949) gave MITI foreign-exchange allocation leverage over imports and technology licensing. Keiretsu groups (Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Sumitomo, Fuyo, Sanwa, Dai-Ichi Kangyo) reorganised around main banks. Bank of Japan window guidance channelled credit to priority sectors (steel, shipbuilding, autos, electronics, petrochemicals). Ikeda's Income Doubling Plan (1960) targeted doubling nominal GNP in a decade — achieved in seven years. Savings-driven investment (household saving ~20% of disposable income) financed high capital formation. GATT accession 1955; OECD entry 1964 began formal liberalisation; capital account opening was gradual into the 1970s. 1971 Nixon shock and 1973 oil shock ended the high-growth phase; by 1975 the model was shifting toward private-sector-led innovation.

Policy-content fingerprint — how the framework codes this movement on its axes

↑
sectoral licensing
regulatory.sectoral_licensing
Sector-specific licensing regimes, concentration / quota allocation, state-controlled entry (energy, telecoms, healthcare, banking).
increased · strong
tighter sectoral licensing / more state gating
MITI administrative guidance, foreign-exchange allocation, entry controls in priority sectors.
~
trade openness
regulatory.trade_openness
Trade policy openness — tariffs, non-tariff barriers, FTAs, industrial protection.
mixed · moderate
Import protection on priority sectors during catch-up; GATT 1955 and OECD 1964 progressively opened trade.
↑
sectoral subsidy
fiscal.sectoral_subsidy
Targeted industrial and sectoral subsidies (renewable energy, chip manufacturing, agriculture, green hydrogen, etc).
increased · moderate
expanded sectoral subsidies
JDB/JEXIM directed lending and tax preferences to priority industries.
↓
central bank independence
monetary.central_bank_independence
De jure and de facto independence of the central bank from fiscal authority. Per D.1.5 scope, one of the framework's defensible monetary positions.
decreased · moderate
lower independence (fiscal dominance, politicised appointments)
BoJ operated under MoF direction; formal independence not until 1998.
↓
financial deregulation
regulatory.financial_deregulation
Financial-sector regulation — banking separation, capital requirements, cross-border activity rules, derivatives oversight.
decreased · moderate
looser financial regulation
Segmented banking, interest-rate controls, directed credit within main-bank system.

Policies enacted

Schools of thought aligned or opposed

aligned
developmentalism
Canonical developmental-state case alongside Korea and Taiwan.
partial
institutionalism
Main-bank keiretsu governance as an institutional substitute for arm's-length capital markets.
opposed
austrian

References

Notes

Pre-1996 sample extension. End date 1975 chosen to separate from post-oil-shock adjustment and 1985 Plaza Accord era.