As Japan struggles with its soaring yen, a series of catastrophes and a plummeting domestic business market, thousands of Japanese citizens are spending a fortune to enhance their English communications skills, which they believe is the key factor in retaining or earning a job opportunity, Reuters reported.

In 2010, Rakuten, an online retailer in Japan, decided to make English the official company language. It was followed by the Uniqlo Apparel Chain operator, Fast Retailing, which aims for English proficiency by 2012.

"Rakuten's decision triggered a shock wave that is extended to many other companies, especially manufacturers, because they too are under pressure to expand outside a shrinking home market," Reuters quoted Yuriko Tsurumaki, a recruitment assistant for Recruit Agent.

"Not all Japanese firms have businesses overseas for the time being, but people are seeing possibilities and sharing a sense of crisis [regarding] English. Now, nearly half of Japanese companies [are] planning [to] require applicants to know business English," she continued.

Economists also eye the skyrocketing yen as a motivator among Japanese companies to procure business overseas, with the goal of building revenue pillars. For example, trading house Itochu bought Kwik Fit, British tire seller, for $1 billion.

A score of Japanese companies, such as Elpida Memory and Murata Manufacturing Co., have moved some of their production facilities outside of Japan to cope with the rising yen.

A Booming Business for English Language Schools

Japan is the world's third largest economy and a major export powerhouse. It requires six years of studying English courses in primary and secondary schools. But despite these requirements, its English proficiency is lagging behind other Asian countries.

In last year's English proficiency test TOEFL iBT, the island nation ranked 27, after Mongolia and Turkmenistan. Recruit Agent told Reuters only 9 percent of 1,156 surveyed white-collar workers are literate in English.

Driven by fear of losing their jobs or pressure to find one, Japanese citizens include English classes among their expenditures. Last year, English institutes earned $9.8 billion, according to data gathered from Yano Institute of Research. It is also expected to increase by 1.8 percent this year.

"This is just the start of Japan's real globalization. Everyone is feeling that they will see a 'No English-No Job' situation," Reuters quoted Kenki Kamiyama, president of Gaba, an English language institute in Japan.

Gaba also revealed that an average Japanese student spends $654 each month for an English course.