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I wish you all the best in the new year．Thank you very much for your special hospitality last year．I would like to ask for your continued patronage this year．
We have been exhibiting at the 34th International Jewelry Exhibition held at Tokyo Big Sight East Exhibition Center from January 11th to 14th, 2023．
Three full years after the outbreak, the endless corona disaster, inflation and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are likely to continue this year．Inflation triggered by massive fiscal stimulus and supply constraints from the new coronavirus has spurred soaring energy and food prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine．
To curb inflation, the Fed raised interest rates by 0.75 percent four times in 2022, and Europe followed suit．However, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicts that one-third of the world will fall into recession in 2023．In addition, China’s economic slump is likely to continue as the zero-corona policy was withdrawn due to protests in 2023, and the infection is spreading rapidly in China．
The problem of the division of the world is likely to progress．The U．S．-China hegemony battle has halted technology transfers in cutting-edge technologies and semiconductors, and Russia’s economic sanctions have reduced energy exports to the West, and countries are scrambling to find new suppliers．Developed countries are also continuing to adopt policies that give priority to their own countries due to soaring energy prices and problems with China, and the division of the world is progressing．
Security issues are also becoming more serious．In addition to the invasion of Ukraine, tensions have been heightened, including the deepening of the U.S. -China conflict, the possibility of an emergency in Taiwan, and North Korea’s missile tests．In addition to deterrence by traditional military forces such as weapons and military forces, it is necessary to prepare for attacks and defense in cyberspace and space, and security issues are becoming increasingly complicated．
Global climate change is also becoming a problem．This winter has been a record snowfall in the United States, a cold snap in India and Japan．Animals and plants that foster natural environment, generate resources and support life are disappearing at a considerable rate through forest development, greenhouse gas emissions, and environmental destruction caused by the invasion of Ukraine．Forest development may infect people with viruses and bacteria that lurk in remote areas, and a new pandemic may occur even after the new coronavirus settles down．
2023 is likely to be a year to face many problems, but this year we are beginning to see signs of an inbound revival．Each country has eased restrictions on going out and entering the country, and in fact, many foreigners can be seen in the streets, although they are not even in the situation before the Corona disaster．China has revised its zero-corona policy, and its reaction has led to the spread of the disease． The early stages of the policy review will accelerate the spread of the disease, but the situation is expected to improve in early spring and the economy will recover．
The resurgence of inbound in our industry is quite a tailwind．Our industry’s commodities, considered luxury goods, are in higher demand overseas, and if inbound recovers due to the current depreciation of the yen, we can expect a lot．Inbound may be the key to our industry in 2023．Against this backdrop, Japan’s largest jewelry show, which is expected to mark the year, was held with the hope of easing immigration restrictions．
Although there were more visitors than the first day, it seemed to be somewhat unsatisfactory．The jewelry show held in Yokohama in autumn was highly motivated by visitors, so I had high expectations for this jewelry show in Tokyo, but this time there were many visitors, but there were many wait-and-see visitors and the purchase was carefully selected．
It seems that there were many companies that were exhibiting expecting Chinese buyers from mainland China to come, but it seemed that they rarely saw them as before．As of the 11th, the total number of infected people was 900 million, 64％ of the total population, and the number of infected people in China continued to increase due to the de facto end of the zero corona policy．
Even so, I could see a few visitors from Taiwan, India, and Europe, which had never been there before, and I felt a new sign, unlike the products that Japanese and Chinese buyers purchase．”Live commerce in China and the Philippines in Japan doesn’t feel as strong as before, but there are many people called rivers, and it won’t disappear in the future．
We had the impression that Japanese visitors were as few as before, but those who came in this situation were eager to buy and were seriously looking for products．The future trend of the industry is expected to change significantly in China, where the number of infected people decreases by gaining herd immunity after the spread of the infection.
This exhibition also allowed us to see many of you from beginning of the year. We were also able to attract many new visitors despite these circumstances. We hope that we can work together with you to overcome this year’s significant changes in the situation. We look forward to your continued good will in this year.
