VOA慢速英语2021--日本贫富差距日益加大

Japan Confronts Rising Inequality

Japan's stock market has increased and luxury cars are selling well in Tokyo after eight years of economic growth under Abenomics.

Abenomics is the economic policy begun under former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Under the policy, the Japanese government has used government spending and made lending money easier to help the economy.

But recent data show that Japan's new wealth is centered in a small part of the population rather than spread widely.

New Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has said dealing¹ with that issue is important. Kishida has promised to deal with income inequality which the coronavirus health crisis has made worse. But he has offered few ideas as to how he will do so.

"It's like everyone has become poor," said Masanori Aoki. He owns a small coffee shop in a working-class area of northeast Tokyo.

"With Abenomics, the finance minister talked about wealth trickling² down. But there was no such thing, was there? Almost nothing," he said. He took a job as a part-time bus driver when the COVID-19 pandemic forced him to temporarily shut down his store.

Kimie Kobayashi works at a childcare center in Tokyo. She says her wages have not increased for four years. She said many who work in the industry have learned that wages rarely increase.

"I can't say that my livelihood³ is getting any better," said Kobayashi. "The government collects tax but that money isn't used to help people who are really in need."

Abenomics failed to create wealth to households through higher wages, data show.

In a study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation (OECD), Japan's poverty rate is the second highest among G7 nations and ninth highest among OECD countries. That information is based on data available up to 2020.

Wages rose just 1.2 percent from 2012 through 2020, government data showed. Japanese households' average wealth fell by 3.5 percent from 2014 to 2019. However, another government study showed that the wealthiest 10 percent saw an increase.

Inequality is far more evident in countries such as the United States and Britain. Japan stood around the middle of 39 countries examined by the OECD in 2020.

The situation did improve for some in Japan. Manabu Fujisaki recently spent 7 million yen⁴, about $62,000, on a Mercedes-Benz automobile⁵ using money made from investing in cryptocurrencies. A cryptocurrency is a form of digital money that is not regulated by a central bank and whose records are stored in an encrypted computer database. Fujisaki said he plans to build a 200-million-yen house in Tokyo next year.

Department store Takashimaya says there is high demand for Patek Philippe watches that cost more than 10 million yen.

And Alfa Romeo vehicle sales from April to September more than doubled from sales in 2020. Sales of other imported vehicles like Ferrari, Jaguar⁶ and Maserati also increased, industry data showed.

Takahiro Koike runs the department store Isetan. He said, "We're seeing a clear rise in demand for luxury goods among the new rich." By new rich, he means newly wealthy young businessmen and other high earners.

Kishida hopes to narrow the wealth disparity by forming what he calls a "new type of capitalism⁷." That includes higher wages for public health and medical workers, and tax breaks to businesses that raise pay.

Shigeto Nagai is an economist⁸ at Oxford⁹ Economics. He said offering short-term tax breaks is not likely to influence businesses to raise wages. Instead, Nagai suggests reforms in areas such as Japan's strict labor¹⁰ system.

Words in This Story

luxury – n. something that is expensive and not necessary

trickling - v. slowly moving in small numbers or amounts

1 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

2 trickling   

n.油画底色含油太多而成泡沫状突起v.滴( trickle的现在分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动

参考例句：

• Tears were trickling down her cheeks. 眼泪顺着她的面颊流了下来。
• The engine was trickling oil. 发动机在滴油。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 livelihood   

n.生计，谋生之道

参考例句：

• Appropriate arrangements will be made for their work and livelihood.他们的工作和生活会得到妥善安排。
• My father gained a bare livelihood of family by his own hands.父亲靠自己的双手勉强维持家计。

4 yen   

n. 日元；热望

参考例句：

• He wanted to convert his dollars into Japanese yen.他想将美元换成日币。
• He has a yen to be alone in a boat.他渴望独自呆在一条船上。

5 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

6 jaguar   

n.美洲虎

参考例句：

• He was green with envy when he saw my new Jaguar car.看见我那辆美洲虎牌新车，他非常妒忌。
• Should you meet a jaguar in the jungle,just turn slowly,walk away.But slowly,never look back.你在丛林中若碰上美洲虎，就慢慢转身走开，可一定要慢，切莫回头看。

7 capitalism   

n.资本主义

参考例句：

• The essence of his argument is that capitalism cannot succeed.他的论点的核心是资本主义不能成功。
• Capitalism began to develop in Russia in the 19th century.十九世纪资本主义在俄国开始发展。

8 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

9 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

10 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。