Japan could suffer an economic loss exceeding 2.2 trillion yen (about 14 billion U.S. dollars) from a drastic drop in Chinese visitor numbers, a leading Japanese economist projected on Sunday.
Takahide Kiuchi, executive economist at Nomura Research Institute, made the assessment hours after China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism formally urged its citizens to avoid non-essential travel to Japan, citing security concerns. The alert followed a similar advisory issued by China's foreign ministry on Friday.
Kiuchi said that a sharp drop in Chinese visitors could reduce Japan's GDP by 0.36 percent, highlighting the potential economic vulnerability as tourism emerges as a key industry for Japan.
Moreover, Chinese tourists have been the top spenders in Japan's tourism market. According to Japan Tourism Agency statistics, Chinese visitors led all foreign tourists in spending in Japan in 2024.
According to the Chinese foreign ministry, China is Japan's largest trading partner, second largest export destination and largest source of imports, with bilateral trade totaling 308.3 billion U.S. dollars in 2024, including 156.25 billion U.S. dollars in Japanese exports to China.
Japan to suffer huge economic loss from plunge in Chinese visitors: analyst
Japan to suffer huge economic loss from plunge in Chinese visitors: analyst
The operational efficiency of Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport in south China's Guangdong Province has greatly improved following the launch of a new terminal and a new runway one month ago.
The airport officially put into operation its Terminal 3 and fifth runway on October 30, making it China's first civil airport to operate five commercial runways.
Terminal 3 features a range of self-service facilities, including check-in kiosks, automated baggage drop systems, and smart security screening equipment, which have greatly streamlined passenger processing.
Since its opening, five airlines have shifted their domestic operations to Terminal 3, which now handles an average of 158 flights and about 26,000 passengers daily.
"Compared with Terminal 1, both the number of staffed counters and self-service kiosks of Terminal 3 have increased significantly, greatly reducing the average check-in time for passengers. For domestic direct flights, the entire check-in process can be completed in a minimum of one minute," said Shi Mengyao, a staffer with the ground service department of the Guangdong branch of China Eastern Airlines.
Beyond efficiency improvements, the terminal also includes an observation deck that offers travelers panoramic views of the airfield.
"Since its opening, the observation deck attracts over 3,000 visitors per day on average, with total visits exceeding 100,000 to date," said Luo Li, deputy general manager of a terminal management company at Baiyun International Airport.
The airport's expansion also marks another step toward building a world-class airport cluster in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
"The airport's expansion not only consolidates the Greater Bay Area as an aviation hub connecting China with the world, but also helps lower logistics costs within the area, promote the free flow and efficient allocation of economic resources, and enhances the area's capacity for global resource allocation," said Li Jing, chief planner with the Guangdong Provincial Department of Transport.
New terminal, runway boost operational efficiency of airport in Guangzhou
