The Matsushita Electric Corporation today declared that under no circumstances would it permit any of its 40 companies to yield to the threats or pressures of the Arab boycott office. The announcement came in answer to a published report that the multi-million dollar Japanese complex had refused to engage in trade relations with Israel.
In a letter to the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith, K. Isomura, president of the Matsushita Corporation of America, said company policy is to “sell to anyone, anywhere in the world, regardless of any individual country’s boycotting policies.” This policy, he asserted, applies to each of Matsushita’s 40 separate divisions. Furthermore, Mr.Isomura went on to say, Matsushita “will be pleased to negotiate directly with representatives of Israeli purchasers.” He attributed the boycott report to “mis-understandings which arise from language barriers.
In regard to one special charge, that Matsushita had refused to sell its dishwashers, he explained, they are not being exported to any country as yet, they are manufacturered only for domestic sale in Japan.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.