A.J.H. Latham retired as Senior Lecturer in International Economic History at the University of Wales, Swansea, in 2003. His recent books include Rice: The Primary Commodity. He co-edited (with Kawakatsu) Asia Pacific Dynamism, 1550–2000 (both are published by Routledge)., Heita Kawakatsu is Vice-Director of the International Research Centre for Japanese Studies in Kyoto, and Professor of Economic History there. His publications in Japanese include Japanese Civilisation and the Modern West, and he recently edited. A History of the Asia Pacific Economy, 1500–2000.