Japan emerges from the shadows | A new generation embraces M&A | Nikkei heads for 24,000 by 2010... or sooner | Debt is not a dirty word | Living in the past; paying with the future
JAPAN IS NOTHING if not conformist. Centuries of tradition and strict social etiquette impose restraints on the individual for the benefit of society. An air of calm pervades the well-ordered streets of Tokyo where even policemen, parking attendants and security guards salute and bow smartly to passers-by. So when someone does something unusual in Japan, it usually gets noticed.
It is unlikely that few locals took much notice of Shuhei Abe when he founded Sparx Asset Management in 1989 as president and CEO. That cannot be said today: Sparx, which is listed on Japanese growth market Jasdaq, manages $14 billion of investments and boasts...
