Deterioration of Specific Regional Economies and the Impact of the Earthquake

「Contraction of the regional economy and population decline, contraction of the customer base due to inherited deposits flowing out of the prefecture, declining demand for funds, and slower deposit inflows」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, construction and automotive-related sectors lacked strength due to declining housing starts, fluctuations in public works depending on the ordering entity, and weak passenger-car sales, while retail remained firm. Although corporate sentiment improved, companies continued to take a cautious stance in light of higher costs, labor shortages and uncertainty in the external environment.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, production activity showed some weakness, but private consumption continued to expand and visitor numbers at major tourist destinations also increased, resulting in a gradual recovery.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, production activity and public investment remained weak, but private consumption continued to expand, employment conditions remained firm, and signs of improved corporate investment sentiment emerged, resulting in a continued modest recovery.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, production activity fluctuated, but private consumption continued to expand and housing starts also increased, resulting in a modest recovery.」

「In Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, challenges have become more apparent and serious, as population outflows to urban areas, labor shortages and business closures and dissolutions due to the absence of successors have increased, causing the number of establishments to decline. On the other hand, Iwate has abundant natural resources and is gaining prominence as a production and supply base for food and energy, as one of the few prefectures that maintains a food self-sufficiency ratio of over 100%.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, production activity remained weak, but private consumption continued to recover and employment conditions were also improving, resulting in a continued overall recovery.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, public investment declined sharply and housing starts continued to trend downward. However, private consumption and production activity showed signs of recovery, and employment conditions also improved, resulting in signs of bottoming out overall despite continued weakness in some areas.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, private consumption showed signs of recovery and production activity improved, but housing starts declined and public works continued to trend downward, leaving continued signs of stagnation.」

「In addition, the Sanriku Coastal Road, also known as the Reconstruction Road, fully opened in December 2021, substantially improving access not only between inland and coastal areas but also to areas outside the prefecture, which is expected to support progress in industry and tourism.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, public works continued to trend downward and private consumption showed signs of stagnation, but housing starts and production improved, resulting in an overall recovery. On the other hand, infections with the Omicron variant of COVID-19 have been spreading rapidly worldwide, increasing the likelihood that restrictions on individual behavior will be tightened and that the variant will exert downward pressure on economic activity.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, public works declined, but private consumption and production showed signs of recovery and employment conditions continued to improve, resulting in a continued overall recovery. Regarding the impact of COVID-19, the number of infections has been increasing as economic activity resumes in the United States and elsewhere, raising concerns that restrictions on individual behavior could be tightened again in Japan. The impact on Iwate Prefecture therefore requires close monitoring.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, public works were weak, but private consumption improved and production also turned upward, resulting in an overall recovery. On the other hand, the outlook has become increasingly uncertain as the spread of COVID-19 remains unchecked, including through the emergence of clusters, and delays have been observed in vaccinations.」

「In Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, the rapid population decline and the movement of young people out of the prefecture remain unchecked. Business closures and dissolutions, mainly due to the absence of successors, have increased, while the number of establishments has declined, and the vitality of the region is gradually being lost.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, housing starts continued to trend downward, but signs of bottoming out emerged as private consumption and production activity began to recover. On the other hand, the impact of COVID-19 raises concerns that economic activity may stagnate through declining consumer sentiment and restrictions on going out, against a backdrop of a renewed increase in infections.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, private consumption showed some signs of recovery against the backdrop of special fixed benefits, but difficult conditions continued due to restrictions on going out and other factors. Although the active job-offers-to-applicants ratio remained in the 1.0 range, employment conditions continued to trend downward. Production activity also remained weak, as transportation equipment and the mainstay food-products sector declined, while production cuts continued in electronic components and devices.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, employment conditions were on a declining trend, production activity remained weak, and private consumption was also sluggish, resulting in challenging conditions overall.」

「The structural challenges of population decline and declining birth rates combined with population aging remain unresolved, and people aged 15–24 account for 80% of those moving out of the prefecture, with the outflow of young people, particularly for education and employment, trending upward. In addition, the number of business closures remains high, largely due to the absence of successors, making it an urgent issue to address the loss of technologies and employment opportunities.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, private consumption and production activity showed signs of stagnation in their recovery, but employment conditions continued to improve, resulting in a gradual recovery.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, public investment remained weak following the reaction to large-scale reconstruction road projects and other works in the previous year. Housing investment also fell below the previous year, with both owner-occupied and rental housing showing negative trends. On the other hand, private consumption remained on an upward trend, as did new passenger-car registrations, while production activity increased in the mainstay food-products sector and electronic components and devices remained positive. Overall, the economy continued to recover gradually.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, production activity fluctuated, but private consumption showed signs of recovery and employment conditions continued to improve, resulting in a gradual recovery overall.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, private consumption and production activity showed some signs of stagnation in their recovery, but employment conditions continued to improve, resulting in a gradual recovery.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, public investment entered a negative trend despite remaining at a high level, reflecting the reaction to large-scale projects such as reconstruction road construction, while private consumption showed some signs of stagnation in its recovery. On the other hand, production activity gradually recovered as transportation equipment and food products maintained solid production, housing investment increased, particularly in owner-occupied housing, and employment conditions continued to improve. Overall, the economy continued to show a gradual recovery.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, private consumption and production activity showed some signs of stagnation, but housing starts and employment conditions continued to improve, resulting in a gradual recovery.」

「Although concerns arose over the impact of labor shortages at companies, the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, continued to recover from the previous fiscal year and showed a gradual overall recovery.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, housing investment remained weak after the development of public disaster-relief housing passed its peak, and some consumer activity was weak, with department store and supermarket sales slightly below the previous year. However, public investment remained at a high level of orders due to disaster-recovery works and other projects, while employment conditions continued to improve, resulting in a gradual overall recovery.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, employment conditions improved, private consumption and production activity began to recover, and signs of a gradual recovery were observed overall.」

「The economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, was expected to enter a gradual recovery trend, supported by the effects of hosting the Hopeful Iwate National Sports Festival and the Hopeful Iwate Sports Festival, but overall remained stalled.」

「In the economy of Iwate Prefecture, our primary operating base, employment conditions continued to improve, and signs of a recovery emerged in private consumption and housing starts. However, production activity remained weak and public works continued to fall short of the previous year, indicating an overall pause in the recovery.」

「As a regional financial institution, our primary operating base is concentrated in a specific area, namely Iwate Prefecture and surrounding regions. Accordingly, our results are susceptible to economic conditions in these areas, and deterioration in the regional economy or in the business conditions of our customers affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake could adversely affect our results.」