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Mitsubishi
*** Shopping-Tip: Mitsubishi
{{dablink|For information on Mitsubishi brand
computer monitors, see
NEC-Mitsubishi Electronics Display of America Inc.}}
Image:Mitsubishi_logo.png right|175px|thumb|Mitsubishi Logo
The {{Nihongo|'''Mitsubishi Group'''|三�グループ|Mitsubishi Gurūpu}}, '''Mitsubishi Group of Companies''', or '''Mitsubishi Companies''', all refer to a large grouping of independently operated
Japanese companies which share the Mitsubishi brand name. While the companies are autonomous, they share the brand name and trademark, as well as a common legacy.
The Mitsubishi group of companies form a loose entity, the ''Mitsubishi
Keiretsu'', which is often referenced in US and Japanese media and official reports; in general these companies all descend from the
zaibatsu of the same name. A
keiretsu is a common feature of Japanese corporate governance and refers to a collaborative group of integrated companies with extensive share crossholdings, personnel swaps and strategic co-operation.
The top twenty-nine companies are also members of the ''Mitsubishi Kinyokai'', or "Friday Club", and meet monthly. The Mitsubishi.Com Committee is charged with maintaining the overall integrity of the brand as well as maintaining the portal web site.
History
The first Mitsubishi company was a
shipping firm that
Yataro Iwasaki established in
1870. In
1873 it took the name Mitsubishi Shokai (三菱商会). The name Mitsubishi (三菱) has two parts: "mitsu" means "three" and "bishi" means "water chestnut", and hence "
rhombus", which is reflected in the company's
logo. Another translation is "three diamonds".[http://www.mitsubishi.com/e/group/mark.html]
That company soon diversified into
coal mining, shipbuilding,
banking,
insurance, warehousing, and trade. Later diversification carried the organization into such sectors as
paper,
steel,
glass, electrical equipment,
aircraft,
Petroleum oil, and
real estate. As Mitsubishi built a broadly based
conglomerate (company) conglomerate, it played a central role in the modernization of Japanese industry.
At the start of the
20th century the company, which by itself accounted for over half of the Japanese merchant fleet, entered into a period of diversification that would eventually result in the creation of three entities:
*
Mitsubishi Bank (now a part of the
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group) was founded in
1919. After its mergers with the Bank of Tokyo in
1996, and
UFJ Holdings in
2004, this became Japan's largest bank.
*Mitsubishi Corporation, founded in 1893, serves the internal financing needs of the group
*
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which includes these industrial companies.
**
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation, the 4th largest Japanese
automobile auto manufacturer.
**
Mitsubishi Atomic Industry, a
nuclear power company.
**
Mitsubishi Chemical, the largest Japanese
chemicals company
**
Nikon Corporation, a well-known brand of
photography photographic equipment.
World War II
During the
Second World War, Mitsubishi manufactured aircraft, including the famous
Mitsubishi Zero Zero that was used in the
attack on Pearl Harbor on
December 7,
1941 and many other occasions. Also, like many other big Japanese corporations at that time, it made use of slave labor from the Japanese captured territories, like Korea and China. With poor working conditions, many people died during this period. Approximately twenty thousand Korean slave laborers died in the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki{{fact}}.
After the war
Mitsubishi split itself into independent companies in
1946 under the postwar government policy of decentralizing industry. The newly independent companies used their accumulated technology and other strengths to pursue growth under separate business models. As independent corporations, the Mitsubishi companies cooperated in some ventures, as in petrochemicals and nuclear power, and competed with each other in other sectors. The Mitsubishi companies form a loose entity known as the Mitsubishi keiretsu, or Mitsubishi group.
Problems
Mitsubishi has been criticized for some of its corporate practices, most notably with respect to work-place
discrimination, environmental
pollution and the use of
slave labor slave labour, including that of
prisoners of war (POWs), during
World War II [http://www.counterpunch.org/reed03252006.html]. A disgruntled former employee, Kamal Sinha, has started a website called [http://www.kamalsinha.com/mitsubishi/ Mitsubishi Watch] to report such complaints.
The Mitsubishi companies
Core members
*
Asahi Glass Co., Ltd.
*
The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd.
*
Kirin Brewery Co., Ltd.
*
Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company
*
Mitsubishi Aluminum Co., Ltd.
*
Mitsubishi Cable Industries, Ltd.
*
Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation (part of
Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation)
*
Mitsubishi Corporation (Trading company)
*
Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
*
Mitsubishi Estate Co., Ltd.
*
Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation
*
Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company, Inc.
*
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
*
Mitsubishi Kakoki Kaisha, Ltd.
*
Mitsubishi Logistics Corporation
*
Mitsubishi Materials Corporation
*
Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (Automobile manufacturing and sales)
*
Mitsubishi Paper Mills, Ltd.
*
Mitsubishi Plastics, Inc.
*
Mitsubishi Rayon Co., Ltd.
*
Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc.
*
Mitsubishi Shindoh Co., Ltd.
*
Mitsubishi Steel Mfg. Co., Ltd.
*
Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation (part of
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group)
*
Nikon Corporation
*
Nippon Oil Corporation
*
NYK Line (Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha)
*
P.S. Mitsubishi Construction Co., Ltd.
*
Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance Co., Ltd.
These companies are members of the
Mitsubishi Kinyokai (or
Friday Club), and meet monthly.
Related Organizations
*
Atami Yowado
*
Chitose Kosan Co., Ltd.
*
The Dia Foundation for Research on Ageing Societies
*
Diamond Family Club
*
Kaitokaku
*
Koiwai Noboku Kaisha, Ltd.
*
LEOC JAPAN Co., Ltd.
*
Marunouchi Yorozu Corp.
*
Meiwa Corporation
*
Mitsubishi C&C Research Association
*
Mitsubishi Club
*
Mitsubishi Corporate Name and Trademark Committee
*
Mitsubishi Economic Research Institute
*
The Mitsubishi Foundation
*
Mitsubishi Kinyokai
*
Mitsubishi Marketing Association
*
Mitsubishi Public Affairs Committee
*
The Mitsubishi Yowakai Foundation
*
MT Insurance Service Co., Ltd.
*
Seikado Bunko Art Museum
*
Shonan Country Club
*
Sotsu Corporation
*
The Toyo Bunko
External links
-
Portal website for Mitsubishi companies
-
Mitsubishi Sucks and [http://www.kamalsinha.com/mitsubishi/ Mitsubishi Watch] - sites critical of Mitsubishi's track record on issues such as workplace discrimination and environmental concerns
Category:Mitsubishi
Category:Companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange
Category:Conglomerate companies
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Category:Companies of Japan
Category:Conglomerate companies
*** Shopping-Tip: Mitsubishi
