Japan rides huge, income-boosting tourism boom with a weak yen

Tokyo

THE number of tourists and other foreign visitors to Japan leapt dramatically last year, as did their total spending in the country, putting tourism on a par with motor-vehicle parts exports in terms of its contribution to Japanese national income.

A total of 19.7 million people - overwhelmingly from Asia - visited the country, up by 47 per cent from 2014 and very close to the 20 million annual target the government had set for 2020 when Tokyo is due to host the summer Olympic Games.