Half of firms in Japan's Kansai region suffering due to weaker yen: survey

A recent survey showed that 49.9 percent of firms in Japan's Kansai region considered the yen's depreciation more harm rather than good to them due to increased import costs, local media reported on Wednesday.

The survey was conducted by credit investigation company Teikoku Databank with valid responses from 1,762 firms in the six prefectures of Kansai region including Kyoto, Osaka, Hyogo, Nara, Shiga and Wakayama.

Around 49.9 percent of the firms stated that the yen's depreciation had done more harm rather than good to them, while only 8.2 percent of them considered the yen's depreciation an advantage.

Textile and furniture retailers as well as restaurants were more inclined to disfavor the weaker yen, as they were more dependent on imports, according to the survey.

Regionally, 62.7 percent of the firms in Nara Prefecture considered the weaker yen more harm rather than good, the highest proportion among the six prefectures, as Nara had comparatively prosperous textile and wood processing industries relying highly on imports of raw materials.

Kansai region is Japan's second largest economic zone after the greater Tokyo area, with foreign trade volume accounting for 20 percent of that of Japan. With prosperous mall and medium-sized enterprises, the region has close economic ties with China. Endi