Canon to Return Camera Production to Japan as Yen Value Tumbles

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The value of the Japanese yen has tumbled in recent months, and that could mean changes to where Japanese camera companies choose to manufacture their products. Canon is one company that is making changes in response to the changing economic landscape: it says it plans to bring more of its camera manufacturing back to Japan.

The yen has dropped roughly 8 percent since October 2014, and roughly 33% since late 2012. Reuters reports that Canon and other Japanese electronics brands are aiming to reverse the trend of outsourcing their manufacturing to other countries.

Canon reportedly produces about 40% of its products in Japan at the present time, and the company wants to increase that figure to 60% within three years. “From now on, new copier, camera and printer products will be built at domestic factories and as they replace older products, the volume of goods made overseas will fall,” company rep Hirotomo Fujimori tells Reuters.

The Digital Picture points out that this will mainly affect production of low-end cameras and photography equipment, as most of the company’s professional-grade gear has always been manufactured in Japan.


Image credits: Photograph courtesy of Canon

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