Japan has been hit hard by the economic crisis - in the first quarter of 2009 it contracted by 14.2 per cent.  Yet in spite of that collapse, and unlike other major economic powerhouses, it has re-iterated how protecting flagging industries would prolong the current crisis and make recover more difficult.

A Ministry of Trade report emphasised how trade must be part of the solution that allows Japanese producers to remain competitive in a region that is rapidly changing, thanks to the emergence of China.

The report added:

"The temptation for protectionism always grows when the economy worsens, but we must not repeat the history of protectionism reducing world trade, triggering global recession and then World War II."

Hear, hear!