Tourism and Investment in Japan

The Japan National Tourism Organization announced on July 17 that the number of foreign visitors to Japan in the first half of 2019 recorded the highest ever exceeding 16,633,000, an increase of 4.6% over the same period last year. Chinese travelers whose visa requirements have been eased in January and Vietnamese travelers from which flights to Japan have newly started boosted the number. By country and region, China tops with 4,532,500 people visiting Japan with increase of 11.7%. Korea follows although it dropped 3.8 percent to 3,862,700 for the first decline in five years. Taiwan also fell 1.0 percent to 2,480,800. As a result the overall growth rate has shrunk from 15% in the first half of last year. The Japanese government pointed out that significant growth can also be expected in the second half as natural disasters such as the Hokkaido earthquake caused decreasing visitors last year. In addition the government indicated that it is likely to renew th...

Ukai, cormorant fishing in Gifu City In Japan, tourism is expected as a leading industry in the coming years. The number of tourists visiting Japan has continued to increase since 2012. Foreign tourists coming to Japan have outnumbered the Japanese tourists going overseas since 2015 and more than 31 million foreign tourists visited Japan in 2018. The Chubu region, located in the center of Japan,  has been attracting tourists with magnificent scenery such as Mt. Fuji, the highest in Japan and known as the national symbol and a mountain area called Japan Alps, a series of mountain ranges with 3,000 meters peaks. In addition there are famous cities and towns in this region attracting tourists from around the world with their fascinating history and culture, such as Shirakawa-go, designated as a World Heritage Site in 1995 and Takayama City where the Edo era cityscape and long inherited culture still remain.  There are also many nice hot spring resorts here. Hote...

Pacific Industrial CO., LTD. in Ogaki City, Gifu Prefecture is a manufacturer specializing tire valves established in 1930.   Tire valves and valve cores it produces boast a high share of almost 100% in Japan and more than 20% in the world.   It has developed TPMS, tire pressure monitoring system as a next-generation valve that detects abnormalities in tire air pressure and temperature with a sensor and notifies the driver.   In addition, it engaged in production of automobile body components, interior and exterior products such as wheel caps, engine covers and control valves necessary for refrigerant control of car air conditioners, room air conditioners and fuel control of engines.   Pacific Industrial has been enjoying growing sales and profits recent years supported by strong demand for its products.   Net sales in fiscal 2018 increased by 23.2% to ¥ 145,030 million, operating income increased by 27.8% to ¥ 10,307 million, ordinar...

According to the trade statistics for the first half of 2019 announced by the Ministry of Finance on July 18, Japanese trade balance which is the value of exports minus that of imports was a deficit of 888.8 billion yen for the second consecutive period following last year. Due to trade friction between the US and China, exports to China fell for the first time in five quarters. The breakdown was that exports amounted to  38,240.4 billion yen, down 4.7% from the same period last year and imports amounted to 39,129.2 billion yen, down 1.1%. It is the first time in two years since 2017 that the export for first half fell below 40 trillion yen. The imports fell for the first time since the second half of 2016. The trade balance between China was the deficit of 2,049.3 billion yen. Exports to China fell by 8.2% to 7,030.1 billion yen, as the US-China trade friction slowed the economy and curbs capital investment in the country. Equipment to m...

Ibiden Co., Ltd. headquartered in Ogaki City, Gifu Prefecture manufactures IC packages, electronic products such as printed circuit boards and ceramic products. In recent years, IC packages for Intel and printed wiring boards for smartphones are the main products. It is also a major manufacturer of Diesel Particulate Filter, equipment for automobiles to remove black smoke form diesel engine exhaust. Recently, the company faces tough situation because of changes of the main market. Demand for electronic components for smartphones was sluggish and sales for exhaust gas purification filters also decreased due to shrinking ratio of diesel vehicles in Europe. Its profit for consolidated base of the fiscal year ending March 2019 were  3.3 billion yen, down 72% from the previous term. Sales were down 3 percent to 291.1 billion yen. To cope with these circumstances the company is developing new products to build next business pillars that support lo...

Inuyama Castle, cormorant fishing, Inuyama Festival  Inuyama City, Aichi Prefecture has been prospering because of its importance of location from traffic and logistics view points since ancient times with Kiso River, one of the largest rivers in Nobi Plain flowing through the northern part of the city.   It played a role as a strategic battle ground in the Warring States period and developed as a castle town in the Edo period.  Because of those history many historical footprints still remain around the city. Amon g them there is Inuyama Castle which has the oldest wooden castle tower in Japan, built in 1537 by Oda Nobuyasu, an uncle of Oda Nobunaga who was one of the most famous warlords. F rom the top of the castle you can see the amazing view of Nobi Plain. There is a corridor surrounding the top floor of the castle so you can see the far beyond around the area. When weather is fine you can enjoy the beautiful view of Kiso River, Mt....