Great East Japan Earthquake and Risk Management for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises ―How Do Japanese SMEs Prepare against Natural Disasters?－

Nobuyoshi Yamori and Yoshihiro Asai
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Yoshihiro Asai: Meiji University, Japan and California State University, Northridge, USA

No DP2017-14, Discussion Paper Series from Research Institute for Economics & Business Administration, Kobe University

Abstract: We conducted a questionnaire survey regarding insurance and risk management of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) all over Japan in 2014. Based on that survey, this research examined who prepared less against natural disasters before the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and how seriously Japanese SMEs with poor risk management were affected by the earthquake. We find that SMEs in a weaker financial condition tended to take fewer measures against earthquakes before the Great East Japan Earthquake. We also find that companies in a weaker financial condition tend to prepare less for earthquake risks even after the Great Earthquake. Furthermore, we find that direct damages from the Great East Japan Earthquake were more serious for SMEs with poor risk management than for those with sound risk management.

Keywords: Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs); Earthquake insurance; Risk management; Natural disasters (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: G22 G31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 26 pages
Date: 2017-05
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ias and nep-rmg
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