
Episode #6
Japan is now Australia's second-largest source of foreign direct investment: Ian Williams
Japan is now Australia's second-largest source of foreign direct investment, four record years running: Ian Williams - Senior Adviser, Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer That is the AJBCC's number, not mine. So I sat down with Vice-President Ian Williams, one of the only people to have played test rugby for both Australia and Japan, and asked him to walk me through it. Welcome to a new episode of The Jason de Sousa Show. We got into: → Why the real question on Japanese investment isn't whether it's a structural shift, it's whether Japan is now buying the assets instead of buying the product. → Why Japanese housebuilders think they can make money building Australian homes when Australian housebuilders keep going broke. → What an $18-20 billion frigate deal and a 20% gas reservation policy are actually doing to a relationship built on energy and defence, not just trade. Ian has lived in a Kobe Steel dormitory, speaks the language, and sits at the centre of the Australia-Japan commercial relationship as few Australians do. Few people have a better read on where Japanese capital is really headed and why. Last question I asked him: what is the single number that tells us in three years whether this relationship deepened, or just got talked about? His answer is in the episode. I am curious what yours would be. Listen and subscribe at: Spotify here: https://lnkd.in/fJq96sk Listen and subscribe at Apple Podcasts here: https://lnkd.in/fRBYnZf Youtube: https://lnkd.in/g8rFxGf E-mail us at smartercitiespod@gmail.com






