Showa Depression

This was the most serious depression before World War II, which was triggered by the so-called lifting of the gold embargo and coincided with the Great Depression that began in 1929 (Showa 4), plunging the Japanese economy into crisis from 1930 to the following year.

In September 1917 (Taisho 6), in the midst of World War I, Japan followed the United States in banning gold exports (effectively suspending the gold standard). The United States lifted the ban on gold exports as soon as 1919, after the war, and returned to the gold standard. However, Japan did not lift the gold ban, even though its specie reserves in both its home and overseas territories had risen to 2,045 million yen by the end of 1919, and its international balance of payments was in deficit. In the 1920s, major countries around the world returned to the gold standard one after another, and the network of the international gold standard was rebuilt, incorporating the gold exchange standard to a large extent, and the world economy enjoyed a period of relative stability, leveraging the US's economic boom and overseas investment. In response to this trend, the Japanese government also tried to lift the gold ban several times. However, faced with successive economic crises such as the postwar depression of 1920 (Taisho 9), the banking panic of 1922, the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, and the financial panic of 1927 (Showa 2), which was triggered by the forced restructuring of special loans to bail out the financial world, which had been repeated up until that point. In June 1953, France also lifted its ban on gold exports at a new parity (a one-fifth devaluation), leaving Japan alone among the major countries. In the same year, the yen's exchange rate fluctuated wildly, partly due to speculation that Japan would return to the EU, and demands for exchange stability (fixing the exchange rate at the old parity due to the lifting of the gold ban) grew among the entire financial world, regardless of whether they were exporters or importers.

In July 1929, the Seiyukai cabinet led by Tanaka Giichi collapsed over the handling of the assassination of Zhang Zuolin (June 4th of the same year), and the Minseito cabinet led by Hamaguchi Osachi, which had been calling for the immediate lifting of the gold embargo, was formed. With Inoue Junnosuke as Minister of Finance and Shidehara Kijuro as Minister of Foreign Affairs, the cabinet carried out a policy shift, proclaiming "lifting the gold embargo, fiscal austerity, non-issuance and debt reduction" as well as "renewing diplomacy with China, promoting disarmament, and cooperative diplomacy with the United States and Britain." Inoue promoted deflationary policies to replenish foreign reserves and tighten fiscal and monetary policy, and lifted the gold embargo in January 1930. However, the favorable balance of payments and the rise in the exchange rate, which had been accompanied by so-called leads and lags, in which export payments were accelerated and import payments were deferred in anticipation of the lifting of the ban, suddenly reversed course after the lifting of the ban. The combination of austerity measures and an agricultural depression led to an unprecedented recession and ushered in an era of vagrants. The severity of the depression is clearly seen in the contraction of various economic indicators in 1930 and 1931, which had risen to 100% in 1929. National income fell by 81% and 77%, wholesale prices dropped by 83% and 70%, respectively, rice prices plummeted by 63% in both years, and cotton yarn, the two main export items, plummeted by 66% and 56%, and raw silk by 66% and 45%. Exports fell by 68% and 53%, and imports by 70% and 60%. The number of companies cutting back capital and dissolving increased dramatically, production restrictions, joint sales, and rationalization spread, and business alliances (cartels) and business joint ventures (trusts) were formed. As a result, employment decreased, real wages fell, and labor disputes increased dramatically. In 1955, a major dispute broke out at Kanebo, which had prided itself on its paternalistic management, and strikes on the Tokyo city trams and buses left citizens paralyzed. It is estimated that more than 2.5 million people were unemployed in 1955. The collapse of raw silk prices devastated silkworm farmers, but the bumper harvest in 1955 and the poor harvest in 1956 led to a drop in agricultural product prices and reduced incomes, dealing a devastating blow to small-scale owner-occupied and tenant farmers. The Tohoku region fell into starvation-level poverty. People had to stave off hunger by eating not only miscellaneous grains but also wild plants, and daughters were sold into prostitution, leading to a string of non-payment of wages for elementary school teachers in rural areas. "Fifty cabbages barely cover one shikishima (chopped tobacco), and one hundred turnip bunches are needed to buy one bat (rolled cigarettes). After deducting the cost of fertilizer, what else do we have left?" (Petition by a farmer from Kita-Adachi County, Saitama Prefecture) This was the situation. The agricultural and industrial price gap (Schere), combined with the increased tax burden, intensified farmers' hardship, and the total debt of farmers rose to about 4.9 billion yen, or 827 yen per household.

The government provided low-interest loans to farmers and took measures to maintain market prices for rice and raw silk, but within the framework of austerity measures, these measures were completely insufficient. In terms of industry, the Provisional Bureau of Industrial Rationalization was established in June 1930, and the Industrial Association Law and Important Industries Control Law were enacted in April 1931, promoting rationalization and the formation of cartels, mainly among small and medium-sized exporting companies. However, the lifting of the gold embargo and austerity policies, which were launched amid the rough seas of the Great Depression, ran into trouble when Britain left the gold standard in September 1931 and the Manchurian Incident broke out, inducing a large amount of dollar buying (capital flight). When the second Wakatsuki Reijiro cabinet collapsed in December of the same year and the Inukai Tsuyoshi Seiyukai cabinet was formed, gold was immediately banned again, and the return to the gold standard was short-lived, lasting only two years. The severe industrial and agricultural depression of the past two years intensified the social crisis, which culminated in right-wing terrorism that attacked Hamaguchi, Inoue, Dan Takuma and others, paving the way for war and fascism.

[Yukio Naga]

"Showa Depression by Yukio Naga (Iwanami Shinsho)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

いわゆる金解禁を契機に、1929年（昭和4）以降の世界大恐慌と重なって、30年から翌年にかけて日本経済を危機的状態に陥れた、第二次世界大戦前におけるもっとも深刻な恐慌。

　第一次世界大戦最中の1917年（大正6）9月、日本はアメリカに続いて金輸出禁止（事実上の金本位制停止）を行った。アメリカは戦後の19年早くも金輸出を解禁し、金本位制に復帰した。しかし日本は、19年末には内地・外地あわせて正貨準備も20億4500万円に上り、国際収支も受け取り超過であったにもかかわらず、金解禁を行わなかった。1920年代には世界の主要国は次々と金本位制に復帰し、金為替(かわせ)本位制を大幅に取り入れた国際金本位制の網目（ネットワーク）が再建され、アメリカの好況と対外投資をてことして世界経済は「相対的安定期」を享受した。日本政府もこの潮流に応じて幾度か金解禁を実施しようとした。しかし20年（大正9）の戦後恐慌、22年の銀行恐慌、23年の関東大震災、さらにはそれまでたび重なった財界救済のための特別融資の整理強行を契機におこった27年（昭和2）の金融恐慌など、相次ぐ経済危機にみまわれて、踏み切ることができなかった。28年6月にはフランスも新平価（5分の1切下げ）による金輸出解禁を行ったので、主要国では日本のみが残された。同年には日本の復帰思惑も絡んで円の為替相場は激しく変動し、為替安定（金解禁による旧平価での為替レートの固定）の要求は、輸出・輸入業者の別なく、財界全体の要求となって高まった。

　1929年7月、張作霖(ちょうさくりん)爆殺事件（同年6月4日）の処理をめぐり田中義一(ぎいち)政友会内閣が瓦解(がかい)し、かねてから金解禁即行を迫っていた浜口雄幸(おさち)民政党内閣が成立、井上準之助(じゅんのすけ)大蔵大臣、幣原喜重郎(しではらきじゅうろう)外務大臣の布陣で、「金解禁・財政緊縮・非募債と減債」と「対支外交刷新・軍縮促進・米英協調外交」を掲げて政策転換を断行した。井上は対外準備の補充や財政金融引締めのデフレ政策を推進し、30年1月に金解禁を実施した。しかし、解禁を見越して輸出代金回収を早め、輸入代金支払いを繰り延べる、いわゆるリーズ・アンド・ラグズleads and lagsを伴う国際収支の好調と為替相場の上昇は、解禁後一転して逆調となった。緊縮財政と農業恐慌とが重なって未曽有(みぞう)の不況となり、ルンペン時代を現出した。恐慌の深刻さは、29年を100％とした30、31年の経済諸指標の萎縮(いしゅく)にはっきり現れている。国民所得は81％、77％に減少、卸売物価は83％、70％に下落、米価は両年63％に暴落、輸出品の二本柱の綿糸は66％、56％、生糸は66％、45％に大暴落している。輸出は68％、53％、輸入も70％、60％への激減であった。会社の減資解散が激増し、生産制限、共同販売、合理化が広がり、企業連合（カルテル）、企業合同（トラスト）の結成が進んだ。したがって、雇用は減り、実質賃金水準は下がり、労働争議が激増した。30年には、温情主義経営を誇った鐘紡(かねぼう)にも大争議がおこり、東京市電、市バスのストで市民の足が麻痺(まひ)した。30年の失業者は250万余と推定されている。生糸の暴落は養蚕農家を打ちのめしたが、30年の大豊作、31年の凶作による農産物価格の下落、収入の減少は、零細経営の自作・小作農家に破滅的な打撃となった。東北地方では飢餓水準の窮乏に陥った。雑穀はもとより、野草で飢えをしのぐありさまで、娘の身売りが盛んに行われ、農村の小学校教員の給料不払いが続出した。「キャベツは50個でやっと敷島(しきしま)（刻みたばこ）一つ、蕪(かぶ)は百把なければバット（巻きたばこ）一つ買えません。これでは肥料代を差引き一体何が残りますか」（埼玉県北足立(あだち)郡の農民の陳情）という状況であった。農工価格差（シェーレ）は、租税負担の加重と相まって、農民の窮迫を強め、農家総負債額は約49億円、1戸当り827円に上った。

　政府は農民への低利資金の融通や米、生糸の市価維持対策をとったが、緊縮財政の枠のなかではまったく不十分にしか行えなかった。工業面では、1930年6月に臨時産業合理局を設け、31年4月に工業組合法、重要産業統制法を制定して、輸出中小企業を中心とした合理化やカルテルの結成を促進した。しかし、大恐慌の荒波のなかに船出した金解禁・緊縮政策は、31年9月のイギリスの金本位制離脱と満州事変勃発(ぼっぱつ)で暗礁に乗り上げ、大量のドル買い（資本逃避）を誘発した。同年12月には第二次若槻(わかつき)礼次郎内閣が瓦解し犬養毅(いぬかいつよし)政友会内閣が成立すると、ただちに再禁止となり、金本位制復帰はわずか2年の短命に終わった。この2年間の深刻な産業および農業恐慌は社会的危機を激化し、浜口、井上、団琢磨(だんたくま)らを襲った右翼テロとなって暴発し、戦争とファシズムへの道を準備する結果となった。

［長　幸男］

『長幸男著『昭和恐慌』（岩波新書）』

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