i 
among others the well-known family firms of Mitsubishi and Mitsui 
and the Nissan interests (the Manchurian Heavy Industry Development 
Corporation). 
TABLE 67 
Japanese Fishing Companies, 1936 - 1941 
Number of 
Capital 
Reserves 
Net Profit 
Companies 
(yen) 
(yen) 
(yen) 
1936 
346 
182,241,152 
16,665,136 
15,491,053 
1937 
353 
253,677,652 
24,033,043 
16,077,870 
1938 
313 
263,093,982 
27,901,291 
21.173,009 
1939 
312 
259,200,000 
29,500, 000 
24,900,000 
1940 
331 
273,404,454 
52,021,674 
37,304,332 
1941 
318 
298,194,000 
64,223,000 
51,542,000 
Source: Japan Yearbook, 1943-44. 
Japan Marine Products Company (Nippon Suisan K. %.) . This 
company, the largest of all Japanese fishery companies, was created in 
1937 under sponshrship of the Imperial Government. It was successor 
to the much older Kyodo Gyogyo K. K. which had started in the trawling 
business in 1914, capitalized at 2 million yen. After a series of 
consolidations with other companies, the Nippon Suisan K. I. in 1939 
was operating steam trawlers, floating crab canneries and factory 
whalers as well as smaller types of vessels. 
Its operations in recent years stretched from the Northern waters 
to the Antarctic whaling grounds with vessels also operating in the 
Pacific south of Japan, in the Indian Ocean and even off Central America 
and Argentina. In 1939, when it was capitalized at 92 million yen, with 
the Manchurian Heavy Industry Development Corporation as its chief share¬ 
holder, it claimed 87 percent of the Japanese trawlers, 70 percent of 
- 179 - 
16-031 P208 bu 
