Japanese Foreign Ministry Director-General Visits China Amid 'Refrain from Visiting' Advisory... "Seeking to Ease Bilateral Tensions"

Japanese Tourism and Retail Stocks Plunge
Shiseido Falls 11.4%

Amid escalating tensions between China and Japan following Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks about possible intervention in the event of a Taiwan contingency, China has taken the drastic step of advising its citizens to refrain from visiting Japan. In response, a senior official from Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs will visit China on November 17 to help ease tensions.

According to Japanese media, Masaki Kanai, Director-General of the Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will begin his visit to China on this day. The Nikkei reported, “Director-General Kanai will meet with Liu Jinsong, Director-General of the Asian Affairs Department at China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to seek de-escalation of the bilateral conflict triggered by Prime Minister Takaichi’s comments and the subsequent social media post by Xue Jian, Chinese Consul General in Osaka.”

Sanae Takaichi, Prime Minister of Japan (left), and Xi Jinping, President of China. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News Agency

Kyodo News also reported that Director-General Kanai is scheduled to hold talks with Chinese officials on November 18. The outlet stated, “He will reiterate that Prime Minister Takaichi’s response in the National Diet does not represent a shift in the Japanese government’s existing position, and will seek to calm the situation.”

Previously, on November 7, Prime Minister Takaichi stated at a House of Representatives Budget Committee meeting regarding a potential Taiwan contingency, “If (China) uses warships and resorts to the use of force, I believe it could constitute a situation posing a threat to Japan’s survival.”

A situation posing a threat to survival refers to circumstances in which Japan, even if not directly attacked, could face a crisis if a closely related country or region is attacked. If such a situation is determined, Japan can exercise its right to collective self-defense, which implies that Japan could intervene militarily in the event of a Taiwan contingency.

In response, on November 9, Xue Jian, Chinese Consul General in Osaka, posted on social media, “There is no choice but to cut off the dirty neck,” before deleting the post. On November 13, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian stated at a briefing, “One must not play with fire on the Taiwan issue. Those who play with fire will perish by it.”

Furthermore, on the night of November 14, China advised its citizens to refrain from visiting Japan. As this could deal a blow to Japan’s tourism industry, it is seen as a de facto exercise of economic pressure.

Following China’s advisory against visiting Japan, Japanese tourism and retail-related stocks plunged across the board. According to the Japan Tourism Agency, as of the previous quarter, Chinese tourists accounted for about 27% of total inbound spending, making them the largest group of foreign tourist consumers.

Shares of cosmetics company Shiseido plummeted by as much as 11.4% during trading, marking the largest drop since April. Pan Pacific International Holdings, operator of Don Quijote, also fell by as much as 9.7%, the biggest decline since August 2024. Both companies are highly popular among Chinese tourists. Additionally, department store operator Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings dropped as much as 12%, while Fast Retailing, the parent company of Uniqlo, fell by 6.9% at one point during the day.

Katherine Lim, Senior Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, pointed out that this situation threatens Japanese companies’ expectations for sales growth driven by increased tourism demand. She also noted that the risk of a boycott of Japanese products in China is rising, which could impact mainland China sales for Japanese companies such as Fast Retailing, Asics, and Ryohin Keikaku, the operator of Muji.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.