JAPAN: Stealing a TV March

A mountainous island nation with few natural resources, Japan depends on the world economy to make its living. In the past, it has relied on trade to secure enough foreign money to buy the raw materials it needs, but in recent years it has swung increasingly to making sizable foreign investments. One of the biggest of these took shape last week, when Matsushita, a $4 billion giant in consumer electronics and household appliances, signed an agreement to buy Motorola Inc.'s U.S. television business.

The deal will make Matsushita the third biggest seller of TV sets in the U.S., trailing only...