The last major bankruptcy in Japan was the collapse of Mycal Corp. in 2001, a retailer that had total debt of 2.1 trillion yen, or about $23 billion at today's exchange rates.

日本上一家大公司破产，发生在2001年的Mycal Corp。身上，当时这家零售业公司的债务总规模达到了2.1万亿日圆，按当前汇率计算约230亿美元。

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Banks had made practically no provisions against loans to Mycal, a big supermarket chain, before it went bust last month.

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But the collapse of Mycal, a big employer with once-powerful friends, is a sign that the system is under awful stress.

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The reluctance to spend has led to several bankruptcies among big retailers such as Mycal, while supermarket Daiei has been seeking new funding to stay afloat.

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