Jiro Ushio, a noted Japanese business leader who also had an enormous influence on politics, died of aspiration pneumonia on June 13. He was 92.
Ushio led the Japan Association of Corporate Executives, or Keizai Doyukai, one of the major business lobby groups in the country, between 1995 and 1999.
He founded Ushio Inc. in 1964 and grew it into a specialized manufacturer of industrial special light sources such as halogen lamps. The company was promoted to the then-first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 1980, a year after he became chairman.
Ushio joined Keizai Doyukai when he was 28 and became chairman of the Junior Chamber International Japan in 1969. He was known as an outspoken young business executive for his controversial remarks, including criticism of cozy corporate culture.
While serving as Keizai Doyukai chairman, Ushio advocated small government and deregulation to promote an economy led by the private sector.
In January 2001, he became a private-sector member of the government's Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy. Until his departure in September 2006, he supported then-Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's structural reform efforts.
Ushio also served in positions such as chairman of telecommunications company KDDI and outside director of Japan Post Holdings. He had a wide range of friendships in the fields of culture and art.
