Japan pursued an early import-substituting industrialisation strategy. similar in many dimensions to those of Argentina, India, and other less successful economies. As late as 1968, effective rates of protection (ERPs) in japan were still quite high and exhibited the cascaded pattern from raw materials (low) to consumer products (high) that is typical of most developing economics (see table 6.8). Unlike many import-substituting economies,however, there was surprisingly high protection of machinery (final producer goods), confirming other research indicating that the Japanese anthorities engaged in an intensive effort to develop this sector. ERP levels in the machinery sector were reduced during the 1970s, only after it was evident from export performance that the sector had become internationally competitive (Itoh and Kiyono 1988). Quite high levels of protection were afforded sectors such as iron and steel and nonferrous metals as late as 1970. Protection in capital-intensive sectors such as pulp and paper and chernicals also remained high, to say nothing of the remarkably high levels in textiles.