Japan sees Chinese tourism plummet

Chinese guests have cancelled 70% of bookings at a Japanese resort long popular with mainland tourists, Financial Times reported. Although the figures from the Kowakien resort near Mount Fuji are anecdotal, a sharp drop in Chinese tourists to Japan have been attributed to tensions over disputed islands in the East China Sea. Japanese visas issued to Chinese visitors fell 15% from 129,900 to 109,700 between July and August, when Japan nationalized three of the islands, known in Chinese as Diaoyu and in Japanese as Senkaku. More than 60,000 plane tickets have been cancelled, according to two of Japan’s largest airlines, Japan Airlines (9201.TYO, JAL.FRA) and All Nippon Airways (9202.TYO, ANA.LON, ANCA.FRA).  Japan’s minister of land and transport said the dispute will make the country’s goal of attracting 9 million foreign tourist difficult to meet. The Japan National Tourism Organization said that between April and June, Chinese tourists spent an average of US$2,250 in the country’s shopping centers. Chinese are thought to spend three times as much as local Japanese shoppers.