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    Japan

    Extended
    Asia · #39 of 117 markets · IEPA 2024 (final) · 2026 current estimate available
    61.3▼ -0.3 YoY
    ●●○0.79IEPA COMPOSITE

    Japan scores 61.3 out of 100 on the IEPA (2024 edition), ranking #39 of 117 economies. That is down 0.3 points on the year before. Its strongest zone is Alignment at 81.9. Its binding constraint, the lowest-scoring of its six zones, is FDI Accelerator at 18.8. How the IEPA works →

    SIX FACTORS · CLICK ANY SCORE FOR ITS EVIDENCE
    IEPA TRAJECTORY · 2010–2026
    201120132015201720192021202320264852566064
    CAPITAL FLOWS · FDI NET INFLOWS % OF GDP
    2010201120122013201420152016201720182019202120232025-0.4500.450.91.35
    IE FDI intelligence · synced weekly
    PRODUCTIVE CAPABILITY
    IE COMPLEXITY LAYER · VINTAGE 2024
    #1of 145 ranked economies
    How much productive know-how this market has demonstrated, read from the range and rarity of what it makes competitively.
    20102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023202412
    CAPABILITY RANK · HIGHER IS BETTER
    0.82% / yr
    Implied growth
    Annual growth the current capability base points to.
    343
    Diversity
    Distinct products made at competitive scale.
    +1.73
    Capability score
    Standardized: 0 is the world average.
    +0.07
    Outlook
    Value of the new products within reach of what it already does.
    READ ALONGSIDE THE INDEX
    This market sits in the top 1% on productive capability but the top 34% on the IEPA composite. The productive base is running ahead of the system converting it, which points the diagnosis at conversion rather than capacity. Both figures rank the same 115 markets that carry each measure.
    INDUSTRY STRENGTHS · REVEALED FROM TRADE EVIDENCE
    VINTAGE 2022-2024
    POSITION IN THE PRODUCT SPACE
    IE COMPLEXITY LAYER · VINTAGE 2024
    Industrial Chemicals and Metals84 of 157 made · 74% of the rest within reach
    Metalworking and Electrical Machinery and Parts84 of 155 made · 92% of the rest within reach
    Electronic and Electrical Goods37 of 73 made · 94% of the rest within reach
    Textile and Home Goods17 of 78 made · 57% of the rest within reach
    Construction, Building, and Home Supplies21 of 104 made · 60% of the rest within reach
    Minerals6 of 48 made · 38% of the rest within reach
    Agriculture3 of 200 made · 11% of the rest within reach
    Textile Apparel and Accessories1 of 50 made · 6% of the rest within reach
    MADE COMPETITIVELYONE STEP AWAY
    Widest opening is Construction, Building, and Home Supplies. This market makes 20% of that cluster today, and 60% of what it does not make sits one step from something it already does.
    Textile Apparel and Accessories is the furthest: 2% made, and only 6% of the rest is within one step. A move there means building capability rather than extending it.
    READ ON THE 253 OF 343 COMPETITIVE PRODUCTS THAT CARRY A POSITION IN THE CAPABILITY MAP
    POSITIONED TO BUILD NEXT
    IE COMPLEXITY LAYER · VINTAGE 2024
    Fork-lift trucks$30B world market
    Machinery & Industrial EquipmentOPENS 0.19 · COMPLEXITY +1.16
    Serums and vaccines$325B world market
    Healthcare & Life SciencesOPENS 0.19 · COMPLEXITY +1.21
    Machinery for making paper$5B world market
    Machinery & Industrial EquipmentOPENS 0.18 · COMPLEXITY +1.32
    Vacuum cleaners$25B world market
    Machinery & Industrial EquipmentOPENS 0.17 · COMPLEXITY +1.19
    Machinery for processing fabrics$8B world market
    Machinery & Industrial EquipmentOPENS 0.15 · COMPLEXITY +0.76
    Hand tools n.e.c.$8B world market
    Mining, Metals & MaterialsOPENS 0.14 · COMPLEXITY +0.42
    THE NEAREST OPTIONS AMONG 337 PRODUCTS ASSESSED · RANKED BY HOW MUCH EACH OPENS UP NEXT
    LIVE SIGNALS
    No recent scored signals for this market.
    PEERS · EXTENDED
    🇧🇬Bulgaria61.3→🇲🇺Mauritius61.2→🇸🇰Slovakia61.8→🇧🇭Bahrain61.8→
    ECOSYSTEM DENSITY
    IE Ecosystem Registry · 2026-10-11
    8,393organizations indexed across 10 types · 8,385 mapped
    Corporate R&D
    2,501
    Universities & research bodies
    2,366
    Research organizations
    1,982
    Health research
    1,275
    Government bodies
    224
    Fab labs & makerspaces
    26
    Science & tech parks
    14
    company
    3
    Incubators
    1
    investor
    1
    Universities, corporate R&D, government bodies, incubators, accelerators, science parks, and special economic zones, indexed today.Explore the directory →
    ORGANIZATIONS
    a sample of 8,393 indexed
    Fukuoka Growth Next
    Incubators · 2017
    Ageo Nursing College
    Universities & research bodies · Saitama · 1989
    National Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities
    Universities & research bodies · Saitama · 1984
    Tetra Co., Ltd. (Japan)
    Corporate R&D · Chuo
    X-Ability (Japan)
    Corporate R&D · Tokyo · 2008
    Kobayashi International Scholarship Foundation
    Research organizations · Osaka · 2002
    Nishinomiya Watanabe Cardiovascular Center
    Health research · Nishinomiya
    Tokyu Land Corporation
    company · Tokyo
    The University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners
    investor · Tokyo
    Fukuoka Prefectural Government
    Government bodies · Fukuoka
    Members get the full directory, filters, and exports.See all 8,393 organizations →

    Japan: common questions

    What is Japan's IEPA score?
    Japan scores 61.3 out of 100 on the IEPA, 2024 edition, which ranks it #39 of 117 economies.
    What is Japan's strongest zone?
    Alignment, at 81.9. The six zones are scored separately, so a market's strengths stay visible instead of being averaged away.
    What is holding Japan back?
    Its binding constraint is FDI Accelerator, at 18.8, the lowest of its six zones. The IEPA reports every zone separately so the constraint stays visible instead of being averaged into the composite.
    How does Japan compare with its peers?
    The closest scored peers are Bulgaria (61.3), Mauritius (61.2), Slovakia (61.8), Bahrain (61.8).
    What is the IEPA?
    The Innovation Ecosystem Prosperity Assessment (IEPA) scores economies across six zones: innovation capacity, entrepreneurship capacity, resilience, alignment, the FDI accelerator, and prosperity outcomes. Every score carries a confidence band and traces to the evidence behind it.
    Run the full diagnostic →Talk to IE about Japan →