Large Companies Collapse

When W. T. Grant Company filed for reorganization under the nation’s bankruptcy laws, it became the largest retailing failure in United States history. The chain, with over 1,000 stores in 40 states and sales of $1.76 billion last year, became insolvent as its liabilities exceeded its assets. In Japan, the giant Kohjin Company, a leading textile manufacturer, also failed due to financial troubles. It was the largest Japanese company to collapse since the end of World War II. These two join a number of other large American and European firms that have gone under in recent years. Many others are not far behind.

Japanese Cities Broke

The financial problems of cities are not confined to the Western world. Tokyo’s Daily Yomiuri reports that 643 Japanese cities are “on the verge of bankruptcy,” mainly because of sharp rises in the salaries of city employees and increasing expenditures for social services. Twice as many cities were added to the crisis list this past fiscal year as were added the year before.