The world has fallen out of love with Japan and Japan with the rest of the world. Aside from discussions with Japanophiles – who wax with justifiable lyricism about the country's efficiency, marvellous cuisine and exquisite sense of beauty – mention of the country these days is likely to provoke a raised eyebrow or a gently suppressed yawn. Investors regard Japan as resistant to their attempts to spread the gospel of shareholder value and a place where a bull run is when equities rally to one-quarter their 1990 level. Such is the lack of interest that one Tokyo-based broker toyed with the idea of removing the word “Japan” from the title of his investment notes in order to lure more clients into reading them.
日本与世界其它国家之间已相互失爱于对方。亲日派还在热情洋溢地谈论着日本的高效、绝妙的菜肴、以及精致的美感，这也可以理解。但除此之外，现在若和其他人谈起日本，换来的可能不是惊讶的表情，就是掩饰不住的倦意。投资者认为，日本对他们宣扬股东价值的努力拒不买账，而且在那里，股市若能反弹至1990年水平的四分之一，就算是一轮牛市了。人们对于日本的兴趣是如此缺乏，以至于一位驻日本的经纪商开玩笑说，正考虑将“日本”二字从自己投资报告的标题中删去，以吸引更多客户来阅读。