The protracted economic slowdown has forced most domestic materials manufacturers to step up restructuring efforts and keep their heads bent low in the hope that the biting winds of recession will eventually die down.
Steelmakers, nonferrous material manufacturers, paper firms, chemical companies -- most say they expect domestic demand in the current fiscal year to fall or at best remain at the same level as fiscal 1998 due to slack consumer demand and corporate investment.
As a result, many have begun to prioritize stripping themselves of excess personnel and capacity.