National Jun. 20, 2011 - 05:04AM JST ( 0 )

NEW YORK —

CEOs, government officials and other senior executives will visit the Reuters bureau in Tokyo on June 20-22 to discuss the outlook for Japan in a series of exclusive interviews. The stories and videos from the closed on-the-record sessions at the Reuters Rebuilding Japan Summit will be posted online at www.reuters.com/summits.

Japan was already facing grim economic prospects when the earthquake in March plunged it into its worst crisis since World War II. Now, the country confronts the tough balancing act of rebuilding its devastated northeast coast and revitalizing the economy while grappling with the underlying problems that put it into a two-decade economic slumber.

There is no shortage of dilemmas. The country needs to plan reconstruction spending but faces threats of credit rating downgrades due to its massive public debt. It wants to raise taxes to pay for the fast-aging society’s ballooning welfare costs, but risks exacerbating already weak consumer spending.  It is reviewing nuclear safety standards following the crisis at the tsunami-crippled Fukushima plant, but needs to ensure ample electricity supplies to power the nation’s manufacturers.

And don’t forget politics. With Naoto Kan – Japan’s fifth prime minister in as many years – having promised to quit following criticism of his handling of the disaster, who will step up to lead the country out of the quagmire?

What will Japan’s companies do to regain their global competitiveness? Will the crisis serve as a catalyst to reinvigorate the world’s third-biggest economy or relegate it to also-ran status?

With global economies having become ever more closely intertwined, the implications are not limited to Japan.

Guests speaking at the Reuters Rebuilding Japan Summit include Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group President Koichi Miyata, 7&I Holdings President Noritoshi Murata, Liberal Democratic Party Lawmaker Taro Kono, Japan Government Pension Investment Fund Chairman Takahiro Mitani, Bain Capital Chairman Shintaro Hori, Citi Head of Investment Banking for Japan and M&A Deputy President Yuichi Jimbo, Sekisui House Chairman and CEO Isami Wada, GLOBIS Group Chairman and CEO Yoshito Hori, Suntech Power Japan President Yutaka Yamamoto, Lawson President and CEO Takeshi Niinami, Carlyle Japan Co-head Tamotsu Adachi, and Mori Building Senior Managing Director Hiroo Mori.