TOKYO -- Travel expenditures by visitors to Japan increased 13% year on year to 1.07 trillion yen ($8.37 billion) in the quarter ended in June, the Japan Tourism Agency said Wednesday.
The figure is the highest for a quarter since the survey began in the April-June quarter of 2010. A steady rise in tourists from such places as South Korea and Hong Kong pushed up the total.
By region, Chinese visitors spent 368.2 billion yen, while travelers from Taiwan spent 153.6 billion yen. South Koreans laid out 117.7 billion yen, while visitors from Hong Kong spent 85.2 billion yen. Travelers from the U.S. spent 76.7 billion yen. These top five regions accounted for 74% of total expenditures.
Shopping was the biggest spending driver, accounting for 414.6 billion yen. Some 296.5 billion yen was put toward lodging, while food and drink accounted for 208.6 billion yen.
For the six months through June, expenditures rose 8.6% to 2.04 trillion yen.
Spending per person shrank 6.7% in the April-June quarter to 149,248 yen. But a greater number of visitors compensated for the drop.
Those visiting from the U.K., Italy and elsewhere in Europe had extended stays in Japan and spent more money.
In June, the number of visitors to Japan jumped 18.2% on the year to 2.34 million, the Japan National Tourism Organization said Wednesday. Of the 20 countries and regions covered in its survey, 17 saw a year-on-year increase.
(Nikkei)
