An aggregate demand - aggregate supply framework is used to analyze the effects of Japanese monetary policy, 1973:1-1990:8. It is found that money supply shocks contribute relatively little to output variability over the sample as a whole. Nor do these shocks seem to be particularly marked...

A simple real model is used to decompose movements of aggregate inventories and output in Japan during 1975 to 1987 to three components, one due to cost shocks, one due to demand shocks, and one due to' shocks from abroad. Cost shocks are estimated to account for about one tenth of the movement...

This paper compares the cyclical and secular behavior of Japanese and U.S. inventories at the aggregate and sectoral level, 1967-1987. While, as is well known, U.S. inventories are sharply procyclical, Japanese inventories are only mildly procyclical. In neither country do inventory and sales...