Japan trickles back to life

A couple taking a stroll at the bamboo grove in Arashiyama, Kyoto, on Wednesday, two days after Japan lifted its nationwide state of emergency over the coronavirus pandemic.

The country received only 2,900 foreign visitors last month, down 99.9 per cent from a year earlier, according to government data. It is the first time that the monthly figure has slipped to less than 10,000 since 1964, when the government began compiling such statistics.

Businesses in the tourism industry in Kyoto, one of the country's most popular tourist destinations, have suffered a huge blow, with almost no foreign tourists seen on the city's streets.

But with the removal of the restrictions imposed under the state of emergency, Japan's recession-hit economy is still expected to regain vigour - albeit at a gradual pace.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on May 29, 2020, with the headline Japan trickles back to life. Subscribe