The was a cabinet

Cabinet (government)

A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...

-level ministry in the government of the Empire of Japan

Empire of Japan

The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...

 from 1925-1947. It was created from the , and was briefly merged with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry  to reestablish that Ministry during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

.

History

The original Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce was created on April 7, 1881, initially under the Meiji Daijō-kan Cabinet, and then under the Meiji Constitution

Meiji Constitution

The ', known informally as the ', was the organic law of the Japanese empire, in force from November 29, 1890 until May 2, 1947.-Outline:...

. It combined the Bureaus of Agriculture, Forestry, Natural History and post station

Shukuba

were post stations during the Edo period in Japan, generally located on one of the Edo Five Routes or one of its sub-routes. They were also called shukueki . These post stations were places where travelers could rest on their journey around the nation...

 maintenance which were formerly directly under the Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Japan

The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...

 with the Bureau of Commerce formerly under the control of the Ministry of Finance

Ministry of Finance (Japan)

The ' is one of cabinet-level ministries of the Japanese government. The ministry was once named Ōkura-shō . The Ministry is headed by the Minister of Finance , who is a member of the Cabinet and is typically chosen from members of the Diet by the Prime Minister.The Ministry's origin was back in...

.

On April 1, 1925 under Prime Minister Takahashi Korekiyo

Takahashi Korekiyo

Viscount was a Japanese politician and the 20th Prime Minister of Japan from 13 November 1921 to 12 June 1922. He was known as an expert on finance during his political career.-Early life :...

, the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce was divided into the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and the Ministry of Commerce. The division was a result of long-standing acrimony within the ministry between the “commerce” portion of the ministry, which sought expanded overseas trade, and the protectionist

Protectionism

Protectionism is the economic policy of restraining trade between states through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, restrictive quotas, and a variety of other government regulations designed to allow "fair competition" between imports and goods and services produced domestically.This...

 “agriculture” portion of the ministry which sought to ban imports of food, especially rice.

In 1934, the Ministry of Commerce divested itself of the iron and steel industry, leading to the formation of the Nippon Steel Corporation. Following the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War

Second Sino-Japanese War

The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...

, the Ministry of Commerce found its role changing from promotion of trade and commerce to enforcing restrictions on trade and management of rationing programs. By the middle of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, the Ministry of Munitions, Ministry of Transport and Communications and the Planning Board absorbed most of the functions of the Ministry of Commerce, and the vestigial remains were merged with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry to re-establish the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce on November 1, 1943. The re-formed ministry was also in charge of distribution of rationed goods.

In the post-war period, the Ministry of Commerce was re-established briefly under the aegis of the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers

Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers

Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers was the title held by General Douglas MacArthur during the Occupation of Japan following World War II...

, and was assigned control of electrical power and electrical distribution. The Ministry of Commerce became the Ministry of International Trade and Industry

Ministry of International Trade and Industry

The Ministry of International Trade and Industry was one of the most powerful agencies of the Government of Japan. At the height of its influence, it effectively ran much of Japanese industrial policy, funding research and directing investment...

, or MITI on May 25, 1949.

Ministers of Commerce

	Name	Cabinet	From	To
1	Korekiyo Takahashi	Katō Kato Takaaki Count was a Japanese politician and the 24th Prime Minister of Japan from 11 June 1924 to 28 January 1926. He was also known as Katō Kōmei.- Early life :...	1 April 1924	17 April 1925
2	Noda Utarō	Katō Kato Takaaki Count was a Japanese politician and the 24th Prime Minister of Japan from 11 June 1924 to 28 January 1926. He was also known as Katō Kōmei.- Early life :...	17 April 1925	2 August 1925
3	Kataoka Naoharu	Katō Kato Takaaki Count was a Japanese politician and the 24th Prime Minister of Japan from 11 June 1924 to 28 January 1926. He was also known as Katō Kōmei.- Early life :...   1st Wakatsuki Wakatsuki Reijiro ōBaron was a Japanese politician and the 25th and 28th Prime Minister of Japan. Opposition politicians of the time derogatorily labeled him Usotsuki Reijirō, or "Reijirō the Liar".- Early life :...	2 August 1925	14 September 1926
4	Fujisawa Ikunosuke	1st Wakatsuki Wakatsuki Reijiro ōBaron was a Japanese politician and the 25th and 28th Prime Minister of Japan. Opposition politicians of the time derogatorily labeled him Usotsuki Reijirō, or "Reijirō the Liar".- Early life :...	14 September 1926	20 April 1927
5	Nakahashi Tokugorō	1st Tanaka Tanaka Giichi Baron was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, politician, and the 26th Prime Minister of Japan from 20 April 1927 to 2 July 1929.-Early life and military career:...	20 April 1927	3 July 1929
6	Tawara Magoichi	Hamaguchi	3 July 1929	14 April 1931
7	Sakurauchi Yukio	2nd Wakatsuki Wakatsuki Reijiro ōBaron was a Japanese politician and the 25th and 28th Prime Minister of Japan. Opposition politicians of the time derogatorily labeled him Usotsuki Reijirō, or "Reijirō the Liar".- Early life :...	14 April 1931	13 December 1931
8	Maeda Yonezo	Inukai Inukai Tsuyoshi was a Japanese politician and the 29th Prime Minister of Japan from 13 December 1931 to 15 May 1932.-Early life:Inukai was born to a former samurai family of the Niwase Domain, in Niwase village, Bizen Province , and was a graduate of Keio Gijuku in Tokyo. In his early career, he worked as a...	13 December 1931	26 May 1932
9	Nakajima Kumakichi	Saitō Saito Makoto Viscount was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy, two-time Governor-General of Korea from 1919 to 1927 and from 1929 to 1931, and the 30th Prime Minister of Japan from May 26, 1932 to July 8, 1934.-Early life:...	26 May 1932	9 February 1933
10	Matsumoto Jōji Joji Matsumoto was a Japanese lawyer of Meiji period specializing in commercial law.Matsumoto served as the Chief of Legislative Bureau from Sep 2, 1923 until Jan 7, 1924 in the second Yamamoto Cabinet. He then served as the Minister of Commerce and Industry from Feb 9, 1934 until Jul 8, 1934 in the Saitō Cabinet...	Saitō Saito Makoto Viscount was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy, two-time Governor-General of Korea from 1919 to 1927 and from 1929 to 1931, and the 30th Prime Minister of Japan from May 26, 1932 to July 8, 1934.-Early life:...	9 February 1933	8 July 1934
11	Machida Chuji	Okada Keisuke Okada was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy, politician and the 31st Prime Minister of Japan from 8 July 1934 to 9 March 1936.-Early life:Okada was born in what is now Fukui Prefecture to an ex-samurai family. He attended the 15th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy, graduating 7th out of...	8 July 1934	9 March 1936
12	Kawasaki Takukichi	Hirota Koki Hirota was a Japanese diplomat, politician and the 32nd Prime Minister of Japan from March 9, 1936 to February 2, 1937.-Early life:Hirota was born in what is now part of Chūō-ku, Fukuoka city, Fukuoka Prefecture. His father was a stonemason, and he was adopted into the Hirota family. After attending...	9 March 1936	27 March 1936
13	Ogawa Kōtarō	Hirota Koki Hirota was a Japanese diplomat, politician and the 32nd Prime Minister of Japan from March 9, 1936 to February 2, 1937.-Early life:Hirota was born in what is now part of Chūō-ku, Fukuoka city, Fukuoka Prefecture. His father was a stonemason, and he was adopted into the Hirota family. After attending...	27 March 1936	2 February 1937
14	Godō Takuo	Hayashi Senjuro Hayashi was an Imperial Japanese Army commander of the Chosen Army of Japan in Korea during the Mukden Incident and the invasion of Manchuria, and a Japanese politician and the 33rd Prime Minister of Japan from February 2, 1937 to June 4, 1937.-Biography:...	2 February 1937	4 June 1937
15	Yoshino Shinji	1st Konoe Fumimaro Konoe Prince was a politician in the Empire of Japan who served as the 34th, 38th and 39th Prime Minister of Japan and founder/leader of the Taisei Yokusankai.- Early life :...	4 June 1937	26 May 1938
16	Ikeda Shigeaki Shigeaki Ikeda ', also known as Seihin Ikeda, was a Japanese politician and businessman prominent in the early decades of the 20th century. He served as director of Mitsui Bank from 1909-1933, was appointed governor of the Bank of Japan in 1937, and served as Minister of Finance under Prime Minister Fumimaro...	1st Konoe Fumimaro Konoe Prince was a politician in the Empire of Japan who served as the 34th, 38th and 39th Prime Minister of Japan and founder/leader of the Taisei Yokusankai.- Early life :...	26 May 1938	5 January 1939
17	Hatta Yoshiaki	Hiranuma	5 January 1939	30 August 1939
18	Godō Takuo	Abe	30 August 1939	16 October 1939
19	Godō Takuo	Abe	16 October 1939	16 January 1940
20	Ginjirō Fujiwara	Yonai	22 January 1940	5 July 1940
21	Ichizō Kobayashi Ichizo Kobayashi , occasionally referred to by his pseudonym Itsuō , was a Japanese industrialist. He is best known as the founder of Hankyu Railway and Takarazuka Revue. He was a supporter of right-wing doctrine and represented Japanese capital in government.-Career:...	2nd Konoe Fumimaro Konoe Prince was a politician in the Empire of Japan who served as the 34th, 38th and 39th Prime Minister of Japan and founder/leader of the Taisei Yokusankai.- Early life :...	22 July 1940	4 April 1941
22	Teijirō Toyoda Teijiro Toyoda , was a career naval officer who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs in 1941, and admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.- Early life :...	2nd Konoe Fumimaro Konoe Prince was a politician in the Empire of Japan who served as the 34th, 38th and 39th Prime Minister of Japan and founder/leader of the Taisei Yokusankai.- Early life :...	4 April 1941	18 July 1941
23	Sakonji Seizō	3rd Konoe Fumimaro Konoe Prince was a politician in the Empire of Japan who served as the 34th, 38th and 39th Prime Minister of Japan and founder/leader of the Taisei Yokusankai.- Early life :...	18 July 1941	18 October 1941
24	Kishi Nobusuke	Tōjō Hideki Tōjō Hideki Tōjō was a general of the Imperial Japanese Army , the leader of the Taisei Yokusankai, and the 40th Prime Minister of Japan during most of World War II, from 17 October 1941 to 22 July 1944...	18 October 1941	8 October 1943
25	Hideki Tōjō Hideki Tōjō Hideki Tōjō was a general of the Imperial Japanese Army , the leader of the Taisei Yokusankai, and the 40th Prime Minister of Japan during most of World War II, from 17 October 1941 to 22 July 1944...	Tōjō Hideki Tōjō Hideki Tōjō was a general of the Imperial Japanese Army , the leader of the Taisei Yokusankai, and the 40th Prime Minister of Japan during most of World War II, from 17 October 1941 to 22 July 1944...	8 October 1943	1 November 1943
26	Chikuhei Nakajima	Higashikuni	26 August 1945	9 October 1945
27	Sankurō Ogasawara	Shidehara Kijuro Shidehara Baron was a prominent pre–World War II Japanese diplomat and the 44th Prime Minister of Japan from 9 October 1945 to 22 May 1946. He was a leading proponent of pacifism in Japan before and after World War II, and was also the last Japanese prime minister who was a member of the kazoku...	9 October 1945	2 May 1946
28	Jirō Hoshijima	1st Yoshida	2 May 1946	31 January 1947
29	Mitsujirō Ishii	1st Yoshida	31 January 1947	26 May 1947
30	Chōsaburō Mizutani	Katayama Tetsu Katayama was a Japanese politician and the 46th Prime Minister from May 24, 1947 to March 10, 1948.- Early life :He was born in Tanabe, Wakayama Prefecture, and attended Tokyo Imperial University. Raised in the Christian faith, he was strongly influenced by the Christian Socialism of Abe Isō...	26 May 1947	10 March 1948
31	Chōsaburō Mizutani	Ashida Hitoshi Ashida was a Japanese politician who served as the 47th Prime Minister of Japan from March 10 to October 15, 1948. He was a prominent figure in the immediate postwar political landscape, but was forced to resign his leadership responsibilities after a corruption scandal targeting two of his cabinet...	10 March 1948	15 October 1948
32	Sanzō Oya	2nd Yoshida	15 October 1948	16 February 1949
32	Heitarō Inagaki	2nd Yoshida	16 February 1949	25 May 1949