Japanese post-war economic miracle is the name given to the historical phenomenon of Japan's record period of economic growth following World War II, spurred mainly by United States investment but partly by Japanese government economic interventionism in particular through their Ministry of International Trade and Industry. The distinguishing characteristics of the Japanese economy during the "economic miracle" years included: the cooperation of manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, and banks in closely knit groups called keiretsu; the powerful enterprise unions and shunt?; cozy relations with government bureaucrats, and the guarantee of lifetime employment (sh?shin koy?) in big corporations and highly unionized blue-collar factories. Since 1993, Japanese companies have begun to abandon some of these norms in an attempt to increase profitability.

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