The government Tuesday released its first list of small and medium-size manufacturers that are competitive in the domestic and global markets due to their technological prowess.
The Small and Medium Enterprise Agency of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry compiled the list of 300 companies to showcase the role smaller firms play in the market and to attract young people to work at them, agency officials said.
The firms operate in such sectors as machinery, electronics, semiconductors, automobiles, metals and chemicals.
"Small manufacturers are the source of Japan's economic recovery," METI chief Toshihiro Nikai said. "I hope local officials will further strive to nurture those companies."
Nikai had asked the agency earlier this year to produce the list.
One of the firms is Fuji Manufacturing Co. in Edogawa Ward, Tokyo, which has a 90 percent share of the global market with its sandblasting technology for treating the surfaces of plasma display panels.
It includes Tamagawa Seiki Co. in Nagano Prefecture, which has 100 percent of the global market share with a sensor for the rotation angle of hybrid car motors.