S/ Yanai Tadashi, Chairman, President and CEO, Fast Retailing / The door to the world is open for various industries, and we are positioned in Japan. There are no passports better than a Japanese passport. You can do business in any country, and Japan has its history and culture. I wonder why we do not utilize these things that are most important. I think this is the most important thing. Japan has its strengths and weaknesses. I think we can achieve better results if we grasp them in a realistic manner and make efforts after better understanding who we are or what our company stands for. If Japanese people do not express what they're thinking more, they will not be recognized as individuals. We need to stop the tendency of getting along with each other just because we're both Japanese. If we don't, I think it will be difficult to work along with foreigners. We need to think about this well and proceed with our business.

Yanai made the remarks at a press conference for announcing Fast Retailing's financial results in Tokyo on October 10.

His recommendations came as a follow-up to his warning expressed in an interview with Nippon TV in August that Japanese people may perish if they do not bring about change.

In the exclusive interview, Yanai suggested that Japanese people might cease to exist unless they increase labor productivity amid the decline in Japan's population.

His words have sparked reactions among fellow business leaders.