Japan¡¯s faded economic prowess received a boost after a maglev magnetically levitated train operated by Central Japan Railway Co. on Tuesday clocked a new world speed record of 603 kph on a test run in Yamanashi Prefecture.

Whether any of this makes a shred of economic sense is another matter.

¡°It¡¯s good for growing, developing countries, but not for Japan that¡¯s decreasing in population,¡± said Edwin Merner, president of Atlantis Investment Research Corp. in Tokyo. ¡°It¡¯s misallocation of resources. Demand for bullet trains will be limited.¡±