By contrast, nations such as Brazil and Mexico which have followed the IMF's advice over the last decade, have had per capita GDP growth of approximately 1.0 percent annually. The IMF contended that the top priority for the East Asian nations as they attempted to recover from their financial crisis should be to dismantle the system that had proven so successful over the prior four decades. The impressive growth rates achieved by these nations, which has largely been accomplished without accepting the IMF's advice, demonstrates that the IMF was wrong. This article discusses the incentives that some companies in Japan are giving their workers to have more children. It is not obvious that Japan's low birth rates will pose any problem for the nation at all.
Japan is a very densely populated country in which land is extremely expensive.
If the nation's population declines it will reduce the crowding to some extent, and thereby improve living standards. More about Asia . This article examines the recent increase in the price of gasoline and places it in a historical context. The article notes that after adjusting for inflation, gasoline prices are still near their lowest points on record in spite of the recent price rise. The article also points out that people in the United States pay far less for gasoline that consumers in other industrialized nations.