Factoryless goods producers in Japan

Manufacturing firms in advanced countries are servitizing alongside the deepening of the global value chain. In this respect, “factoryless goods producers” (FGPs) are attracting attention from economics researchers. This study, using firm-level data, presents findings on Japanese FGPs. In this study, FGPs are defined as non-manufacturing firms that outsource manufacturing processes entirely to other firms. Although the large majority of FGPs are classified in ICT or wholesale industries, some FGPs belong to retail or services industries. FGPs are larger and have higher productivity and wages compared with non-FGPs, invest more intensively in intangible assets, including research and development, and have relatively larger headquarters functions.