Foreign visitors' spending in Japan plunges

Apr 16 (NHK) - Foreign travelers' spending in Japan has plunged amid the coronavirus outbreak.

The Japan Tourism Agency estimates overseas visitors spent 672.7 billion yen, or about 6.3 billion dollars, from January to March while they were in the country.

That is down 41.6 percent from the same period a year earlier. By comparison, such spending saw a 50.4 percent plunge from April to June in 2011, after the major earthquake and tsunami hit northeastern Japan.

Spending by travelers from mainland China made up the largest portion. It fell 44 percent year-on-year to about 2.2 billion dollars. Spending by South Korean tourists tumbled 75 percent. The figures for the United States, Britain and Thailand all dropped over 30 percent.

The declines came as the number of foreign visitors to Japan fell 58 percent in February and 93 percent in March, year-on-year.

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