The Japanese are never late when it is time to do something weirder or more exclusive than others. So, according to a report of the Japan Times, researchers have started counting the number of sex parlors in the Northern island of Hokkaido to determine the impact of the recession. Nothing so astonishing, if you consider that Alan Greenspan, the former FED chief counted the number of underwears purchased.

But here it would appear more to be a trick of economists to get some cheap publicity, if you hear Martin Schulz, the chief economist of the Fujitsu Research Institute:

“Any study into services is most welcome,” said Martin Schulz, senior economist at Fujitsu Research Institute in Tokyo. “We’ve got hundreds of studies on exports and manufacturing. What’s needed is creative thinking on services, and if that includes brothels, so be it.”

The Bank of Japan commissioned thus this “creative” study on the brothels in the area of Susukino, because between 1989 and 2008, while the restaurants there declined by 14 %, the number of sex parlors increased from 63 to 264.

And of course “sexploitation” never is in crisis if you have to believe the report of the BOJ:

The BOJ upgraded its assessment of Hokkaido’s economy to “stagnant” from “stagnating amid increasing hardship” in a quarterly report released in July.

Susukino is one of Japan’s three top pleasure districts, along with Kabukicho in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, and Nakasu in the Hakata area of Fukuoka. By law, licensed shops operating in designated zones can offer services including oral sex and other activities that don’t involve intercourse.

District planners should consider ways to appeal to a broader segment of society, including female customers, to ensure the vitality of the area, the report concludes.

Only one constant crisis or not: the exploitation of human being by his brothers never stops.