Daily news reports from US often don't affect the lives of expat families in Tokyo, but the recent economic crisis and particularly the failure of Bear Stearns has some families wondering if they could be tossed out of the expat life unexpectedly.
Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers have huge offices in Roppongi Hills, an office and shopping complex near our house, which is also near Lucinda's and Arno's schools - which means that many Goldman and Lehman families live nearby and send their kids to Nishimachi and Willowbrook. I've also met parents (mainly dads) who work for JP Morgan and various other banks.
Some columns and news reports today and yesterday say that Lehman could follow Bear Stearns into trouble; this WashPost report says the markets will watch closely when Goldman and Lehman report their earnings in the coming days/weeks. I'm sure the families will be watching, too.
These financial hiccups also make international-school administrators a little nervous. The headmaster of Nishimachi held an info session last week and told parents that the school's building improvements and expansion plans are of course partly dependent on tuition payments from companies that foot the bill for employees' children. (including, say, the Washington Post.) Massive bank layoffs = fewer students.
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