Number of Foreign Visitors to Japan Hits Yet Another Record High
roundup, foreign visitors continue to flock to Japan in record numbers. W
e also report on a third-generation Korean woman living in Japan who is suing a Tokyo hotel operator, claiming she was unfairly refused accommodation. Shinjiro Koizumi takes over from Taku Eto as agriculture minister. The National Diet enacts a revised law aimed at curbing
predatory behavior
at male host clubs. The remains of a Connecticut mother are found in Japan two years after she went missing. And Yuki Tsunoda survives a terrifying crash before finishing 10th at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in Italy.
List of Contents:
Number of Foreign Visitors to Japan Hits Record High in April
Korean Resident in Japan Sues Hotel Operator, Claiming She Was 'Unfairly Refused Accommodation'
Shinjiro Koizumi Named New Agriculture Minister After Taku Eto's 'Rice' Gaffe
Japan Takes Aim at Predatory Practices in Host Clubs
Remains of Connecticut Mother Found in Japan Two Years After She Went Missing
Yuki Tsunoda
Related Posts
Number of Foreign Visitors to Japan Hits Record High in April
Foreign visitors continue to flock to Japan in record numbers. According to data released by the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) on Wednesday, the country received some 14.45 million foreign arrivals in the first four months of 2025, compared to 11.60 million for the same period last year. April saw a single-month record of 3.91 million inbound tourists, a 25.8% rise from 12 months earli
er.
It's
also the first time the figure has topped the 3.9 mill
ion
mark
.
The
prev
ious
high was in January, when 3.78 million foreign visitors arrived in Japan.
'Spring cherry blossom season boosted demand for visits to Japan in many markets, as in the previous month, and overseas travel demand increased in some Asian countries, in Europe, the US and Australia to coincide with the Easter holidays,'
said
the JNTO. Most visitors in April came from China (765,100), ahead of South Korea (721,600) and Taiwan (537,600). Inbound tourists from Canada (72,600) and Great Britain (69,500) hit record monthly highs. Speaking at Wednesday's press conference, Japan Tourism Agency Commissioner Naoya
Haraikawa
said
the number of foreign visitors this year may exceed 45 million.
Korean Resident in Japan Sues Hotel Operator, Claiming She Was 'Unfairly Refused Accommodation'
On Thursday, a third-generation Korean woman who lives in Japan filed a lawsuit in the Kobe District Court against a hotel management company in Tokyo's Shinjuku ward for ¥2.2 million in damages. The woman, who's in her 40s and works as a university professor in Kobe, claims she was unfairly refused accommodation. She alleges that the hotel denied her a room after she declined to present a passport or residence card at check-in. As a resident of this country, she wasn't legally obliged to show either. Only foreigners living outside Japan are required to present their passports.
According to the complaint, the woman showed her health insurance card as proof of address. However, she was told that no exceptions were made for foreigners. A staff member then allegedly suggested that she could stay if she wrote her Japanese name. The woman, who lives under her real name, refused as she believed it violated her dignity. She was subsequently told to leave. The incident, which occurred last year, left her feeling emotionally distressed. 'I decided to take legal action because I don't want others to have to go through the same unpleasant experience I did,' she
said
.
Shinjiro Koizumi Named New Agriculture Minister After Taku Eto Resigns Due to Rice Gaffe
On Wednesday, Taku Eto became the first minister to resign from Shigeru Ishiba's Cabinet. His position became untenable after he said that he 'had never had to buy rice' as he got it free from supporters. Speaking at a political fundraising party on Sunday, he added that he received so much of it, he had enough to sell. The comments angered consumers who are having to deal with skyrocketing prices for the country's staple grain. Eto later apologized, stating that he exaggerated the point. The damage, however, had already been done.
'Eto decided to resign because if the confusion over his remark had continued, it would affect the implementation of agricultural policies. I approved his offer,'
said
Prime Minister Ishiba. Following Eto's resignation, Shinjiro Koizumi was appointed as the new agriculture minister. 'I was instructed to put rice before anything,' the former Environment Minister
told
reporters. 'At this difficult time, I will do my utmost to address the high rice prices that people are struggling with daily.' The current price of rice is around double what it was a year ago.
Japan Takes Aim at Predatory Practices in Host Clubs
On Tuesday, the National Diet enacted a revised law aimed at curbing predatory behavior at male host clubs. The new legislation prohibits establishments from threatening to force indebted customers into prostitution or jobs in the sex industry. It also bans manipulative sales tactics, such as telling customers they will no longer be allowed to see their preferred host or that the host will face penalties, like demotion, unless the customer continues to spend money on drinks and food. The amended law is set to take effect within six months of promulgation.
Any business seen violating these new regulations will receive a warning and instructions to change their policies. Those that
fail to
comply will be threatened with the revocation of their business license. In addition, operators of sex-related businesses are now prohibited from paying male hosts to introduce women to work in their establishments.
Violations of this provision could result in up to six months in prison, a fine of up to ¥1 million, or both.
According to
the National Police Agency, there were 2,776 consultations nationwide related to male host clubs in 2024.
The GoFundMe page for Patricia Wu-Murad
Remains of Connecticut Mother Found in Japan Two Years After She Went Missing
The body of Patricia Wu-Murad, a mother of three from Connecticut, has been discovered more than two years after she went missing along the Kumano Kodo trail in Nara. Her husband, Kirk, announced the news on Saturday on the Facebook page the family set up to help find her. According to the message, on April 27, a member of the original US research team retraced the area where Wu-Murad's backpack had been discovered in September 2024. He then found several of her personal items and what appeared to be a femur.
'He delivered the remains to the local Japanese police, who confirmed they were human,' read
the message
. 'DNA testing was performed, and on May 9, we were notified that the remains were a match to Pattie, through comparison with our daughter's DNA.' Wu-Murad disappeared on April 10, 2023, after checking out of a guesthouse in Higashiomi city. She planned to follow a scenic hiking trail to Osaka, which was expected to take between seven and nine hours. After she failed to show up at the Taiyo-no-yu guesthouse that evening, staff called the police to report her missing.
Yuki Tsunoda Recovers After Terrifying Crash To Finish 10th at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix
Japanese Formula 1 driver Yuki Tsunoda walked away unscathed on Saturday despite his Red Bull car somersaulting into barriers while he was driving at approximately
240 kilometers
per hour during the qualifying round for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix. He started from the pit lane the following day after his mechanics pieced the vehicle back together. A determined single-stop strategy salvaged a point for the Sagamihara-born driver as he finished 10th. The race was won by his teammate, Max Verstappen
. The Dutchman is now third, 22 points behind leader
Oscar
Piastri
from Australia
.
Britain's Lando Norris is second.
In men's soccer, Daichi Kamada became the first Japanese player to start in the FA Cup final. He played the full 90 minutes as Crystal Palace defeated Man City 1-0 to claim the club's first major trophy in its 120-year history. In the English topflight, Kaoru Mitoma scored his 10th league goal of the season as Brighton defeated Liverpool 3-2. Ritsu Doan, meanwhile, grabbed his 10th Bundesliga goal in Freiburg's 3-1 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt. In Portugal, Hidemasa Morita helped Sporting CP win the league for the second successive year.
In the women's FA Cup final, Hinata Miyazawa's Man Utd lost 3-0 to Chelsea, for whom Maika Hamano was an unused substitute.
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Nikkei Asia
an hour ago
- Nikkei Asia
Philippine President Marcos to meet Trump, seeking trade deal
WASHINGTON/MANILA (Reuters) -- Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will meet U.S. President Donald Trump this week, hoping Manila's status as a key Asian ally will secure a more favorable trade deal before an Aug. 1 deadline. Marcos will be the first Southeast Asian leader to meet Trump in his second term. Trump has already struck trade deals with two of Manila's regional partners, Vietnam and Indonesia, driving tough bargains in trade talks even with close allies that Washington needs to keep onside in its strategic rivalry with China. "I expect our discussions to focus on security and defense, of course, but also on trade," Marcos said in a speech before leaving Manila. "We will see how much progress we can make when it comes to the negotiations with the United States concerning the changes that we would like to institute to alleviate the effects of a very severe tariff schedule on the Philippines." The United States had a deficit of nearly $5 billion with the Philippines last year on bilateral goods trade of $23.5 billion. Trump this month raised the threatened "reciprocal" tariffs on imports from the Philippines to 20% from the 17% threatened in April. Although U.S. allies in Asia such as Japan and South Korea have yet to strike trade deals with Trump, Gregory Poling, a Southeast Asia expert at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Marcos might be able to do better than Vietnam, with its agreement of a 20% baseline tariff on its goods, and Indonesia at 19%. "I wouldn't be surprised to see an announcement of a deal with the Philippines at a lower rate than those two," Poling said. Marcos, who arrived in Washington on Sunday, went to the Pentagon on Monday morning for talks with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and will see Secretary of State Marco Rubio later in the day, before meeting Trump at the White House on Tuesday. He will also meet U.S. business leaders investing in the Philippines. Philippine officials say Marcos' focus will be on economic cooperation and Manila's concerns about the tariffs. They say he will stress that Manila must become economically stronger if it is to serve as a truly robust U.S. partner in the Indo-Pacific. Philippine Assistant Foreign Secretary Raquel Solano said last week trade officials have been working with U.S. counterparts seeking to seal a "mutually acceptable and mutually beneficial" deal for both countries. Trump and Marcos will also discuss defense and security, and Solano said the Philippine president would be looking to further strengthen the longstanding defense alliance. Philippine media quoted Manila's ambassador to Washington, Jose Manuel Romualdez, as saying on Sunday that the visit would see a reaffirmation of the seven-decade-old mutual defense treaty and "discussions on how we can continue to cooperate with the United States, our major ally." With the Philippines facing intense pressure from China in the contested South China Sea, Marcos has pivoted closer to the U.S., expanding access to Philippine military bases amid China's threats toward Taiwan, the democratically governed island claimed by Beijing. The United States and the Philippines hold dozens of annual exercises, which have included training with the U.S. Typhon missile system, and more recently with the NMESIS anti-ship missile system, angering China. Manila and the U.S. have closely aligned their views on China, Poling said, and it was notable that Rubio and Hegseth made sure their Philippine counterparts were the first Southeast Asian officials they met. Poling said Trump also seemed to have a certain warmth toward Marcos, based on their phone call after Trump's reelection.
Japan Today
2 days ago
- Japan Today
Trump's tariff pressure pushes Asia toward American LNG, but at the cost of climate goals
U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum and Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry tour the Venture Global's Plaquemines LNG export facility on March 6, 2025, in Plaquemines, La. By ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL Asian countries are offering to buy more U.S. liquefied natural gas in negotiations with the Trump administration as a way to alleviate tensions over U.S. trade deficits and forestall higher tariffs. Analysts warn that strategy could undermine those countries' long-term climate ambitions and energy security. Buying more U.S. LNG has topped the list of concessions Asian countries have offered in talks with Washington over President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs on foreign goods. Vietnam's Prime Minister underlined the need to buy more of the super-chilled fuel in a government meeting, and the government signed a deal in May with an American company to develop a gas import hub. JERA, Japan's largest power generator, signed new 20-year contracts last month to purchase up to 5.5 million metric tons of U.S. gas annually starting around 2030. U.S. efforts to sell more LNG to Asia predate the Trump administration, but they've gained momentum with his intense push to win trade deals. Liquefied natural gas, or LNG, is natural gas cooled to a liquid form for easy storage and transport that is used as a fuel for transport, residential cooking and heating and industrial processes. Trump discussed cooperation on a $44 billion Alaska LNG project with South Korea, prompting a visit by officials to the site in June. The U.S. president has promoted the project as a way to supply gas from Alaska's vast North Slope to a liquefication plant at Nikiski in south-central Alaska, with an eye largely on exports to Asian countries while bypassing the Panama Canal Thailand has offered to commit to a long-term deal for American fuel and shown interest in the same Alaska project to build a nearly 810-mile (1,300-kilometer) pipeline that would funnel gas from The Philippines is also considering importing gas from Alaska while India is mulling a plan to scrap import taxes on U.S. energy shipments to help narrow its trade surplus with Washington. 'Trump has put pressure on a seeming plethora of Asian trading partners to buy more U.S. LNG,' said Tim Daiss, at the APAC Energy Consultancy, pointing out that Japan had agreed to buy more despite being so 'awash in the fuel' that it was being forced to cancel projects and contracts to offload the excess to Asia's growing economies. 'Not good for Southeast Asia's sustainability goals,' he said. Experts say LNG purchasing agreements can slow adoption of renewable energy in Asia. Locking into long-term deals could leave countries with outdated infrastructure as the world shifts rapidly toward cleaner energy sources like solar or wind that offer faster, more affordable ways to meet growing power demand, said Indra Overland, head of the Center for Energy Research at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs. Building pipelines, terminals, and even household gas stoves creates systems that are expensive and difficult to replace—making it harder to switch to renewables later. 'And you're more likely then to get stuck for longer,' he said. Energy companies that profit from gas or coal are powerful vested interests, swaying policy to favor their business models, he said. LNG burns cleaner than coal, but it's still a fossil fuel that emits greenhouse gases and contributes to climate change. Many LNG contracts include 'take-or-pay' clauses, obliging governments to pay even if they don't use the fuel. Christopher Doleman of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis warns that if renewable energy grows fast, reducing the need for LNG, countries may still have to pay for gas they no longer need. Pakistan is an example. Soaring LNG costs drove up electricity prices, pushing consumers to install rooftop solar panels. As demand for power drops and gas supply surges, the country is deferring LNG shipments and trying to resell excess fuel. Experts said that although countries are signaling a willingness to import more U.S. LNG, they're unlikely to import enough to have a meaningful impact on U.S. trade deficits. South Korea would need to import 121 million metric tons of LNG in a year — 50% more than the total amount of LNG the U.S. exported globally last year and triple what South Korea imported, said Doleman. Vietnam — with a trade surplus with the U.S. twice the size of Korea's — would need to import 181 million metric tons annually, more than double what the U.S. exported last year. Other obstacles stand in the way. The Alaska LNG project is widely considered uneconomic. Both coal and renewable energy in Asia are so much cheaper that U.S. gas would need to cost less than half its current price to compete. Tariffs on Chinese steel could make building building gas pipelines and LNG terminals more expensive, while longstanding delays to build new gas turbines mean new gas power projects may not come online until 2032. Meanwhile, a global glut in LNG will likely drive prices lower, making it even harder for countries to justify locking into long-term deals with the United States at current higher prices. Committing to long-term U.S. LNG contracts could impact regional energy security at a time of growing geopolitical and market uncertainties, analysts said. A core concern is over the longterm stability of the U.S. as a trading partner, said Overland. 'The U.S. is not a very predictable entity. And to rely on energy from there is a very risky proposition,' he said. LNG only contributes to energy security when it's available and affordable, says Dario Kenner of Zero Carbon Analytics. 'That's the bit that they leave out ... But it's pretty important,' he said. This was the concern during the recent potential disruptions to fuel shipments through the Strait of Hormuz and earlier during the war in Ukraine, when LNG cargoes originally destined for Asia were rerouted to Europe. Despite having contracts, Asian countries like Bangladesh and Sri Lanka were outbid by European buyers. 'Events in Europe, which can seem very far away, can have an impact on availability and prices in Asia,' Kenner said. Asian countries can improve their energy security and make progress toward cutting carbon emissions by building more renewable energy, he said, noting there is vast room for that given that only about 1% of Southeast Asia's solar and wind potential is being used. 'There are genuine choices to meet rising electricity demand. It is not just having to build LNG,' he said. Jintamas Saksornchai in Bangkok contributed to this report. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
The Diplomat
3 days ago
- The Diplomat
Gas Pains: Why Australia Must Reset Its Energy Ties With Japan and South Korea
Australia can't be a regional climate leader unless it has hard conversations about LNG with its friends in Japan and South Korea. Behind closed doors, Australia has been lobbying hard to secure its bid to host the UNFCCC's annual climate forum in 2026. Although the deal has yet to be inked, key stakeholders in this space are already preparing for an Australia-Pacific COP31, with an end to fossil fuel expansion expected to be a key pillar of negotiations. Following its decisive re-election in May, Australia's center-left Albanese government is confident it can sell its climate credentials on the world stage. This is in no small part due to a rapid rollout of renewable energy projects, with over 40 percent of Australia's main electricity grid now powered by solar, wind, and hydropower. However, this success story is dramatically undercut by Australia's unwavering support for its fossil fuel exports, and the diplomatic nexus protecting this trade. Australia is the second-largest exporter of gas in the world, and Japan and South Korea are two of the primary destinations for this gas. While these countries have historically relied on Australia's gas exports (i.e. liquefied natural gas, or LNG), both Japan and South Korea have made public commitments to transition away from fossil fuels and increase renewable energy capacity, and their domestic demand for gas is already declining. In spite of this, the Japanese and Korean governments continue to invest heavily in the extraction, processing, transport, and deployment of gas. Between 2008 and 2024, both countries contributed over US$20 billion of public finance into Australian gas projects, as outlined in Jubilee Australia's newly released research report. Such finance, funneled through export credit agencies, has been a key factor in the economic viability of many large Australian gas projects. With these projects facing increasing scrutiny on the grounds of their intensive emissions contributions, international civil society have called for an end of the Japanese and Korean taxpayers bankrolling fossil fuel expansion. In what have become familiar refrains in diplomatic and trade talks, Japanese and Korean financiers point to two key justifications for their expansion of Australia's gas production. The first is the need for further gas supply to meet their domestic energy security requirements. The second is that LNG is a bridging fuel, needed to transition regional developing economies out of coal and into renewables. Neither argument stacks up. A growing evidence base has been produced by independent financial analysts that demonstrates Japan is contracting more gas than its domestic economy requires. The surplus is resold around the region, with the buildout of the LNG supply chain intended to keep the gas industry operating and profiting for as long as possible. Japanese companies and public financiers invest heavily in downstream infrastructure, such as power plants, to 'cultivate Asian demand.' While Korean investment in Australian gas projects has declined in recent years, major industry firms continue to invest in LNG shipbuilding and transport. These corporate profit margins rely on the Australian government keeping the tap running, by opening up new and emissions-intensive gas fields for export purposes. This 'Gas Empire,' as detailed in the Jubilee report, is heavily reliant on a sophisticated diplomatic apparatus to protect its interests. When the Albanese government has developed policies to support Australia's climate and energy priorities that would potentially derail proposed fossil fuel projects, Japanese government-aligned think tanks and industry bodies have made bold interventions in the Australian media to skew the domestic energy debate. These interventions appeal to Australia's national pride in being a reliable energy trading partner, with the more benign being calls to 'keep the lights on in Tokyo.' However, more alarming rhetoric has implied any moves by the Australian government to phase down its fossil fuel exports would jeopardize global peace. Some members of the Australian government have seemingly welcomed these interventions, expressly inviting submissions by Japanese and Korean gas industry groups in drafting Australia's energy policies, notably last year's Future Gas Strategy that envisaged a role for gas 'beyond' 2050. As concern continues to grow within the Australian public about its own energy security, and the substantial taxpayer subsidies and favorable arrangements provided to the fossil fuel industry, we have to ask the question: can the Australian government exercise sovereignty in its own energy policies? With COP31 on the horizon, the Albanese government is running out of time to answer this question. A key test in the lead up to this event will be at the Asia Zero Emissions Community, or AZEC. Despite the name, civil society groups around the Asia-Pacific have lambasted AZEC as a greenwashing exercise for Japan's fossil fuel expansion. The criticism is that AZEC enables fossil fuel interests to promote technologies to 'mitigate' their emissions. These dangerous technologies, such as carbon capture and storage and ammonia co-firing, are proposed as solutions but consistently fail in their efforts to reduce emissions. Instead, they are promoted to justify opening up new gas projects. The gap between Japan's rhetoric and its action has previously been noted by other analysts on The Diplomat. As a member of AZEC, Australia has a responsibility to hold it to account. Australia is involved in 12 proposed joint ventures under the initiative, only three of which are actually focused on renewables. With renewable energy alternatives already cheaper, cleaner, and less susceptible to geopolitical tensions, Australia's continued support for Japan's mythical fossil fuel abatement technologies is placing it on the wrong side of history. Though the comparison may have seemed unlikely some years ago, these diplomatic efforts to greenwash fossil fuels stand in stark contrast to China, which is well on the way to realizing its vision of being the region's renewable energy export superpower. As humanity stands on the precipice, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres has called for world leaders to scale up ambition to avoid irreversible climate damage. At a recent summit with world leaders he proclaimed that 'the world is moving forward, full-speed' and added: 'No group or government can stop the clean energy revolution.' Diplomatic efforts between Australia, South Korea, and Japan must reflect this imperative. Australia's commitment to the Clean Energy Transition Partnership has marked an end to its public financing of the international fossil fuel sector, and the Albanese government must now take active steps to welcome South Korea and Japan into the agreement. Bilateral decarbonization agreements must be struck to support an orderly transition away from fossil fuel reliance. And in the lead up to COP31, Australia must set a clear standard that rejects the influence of fossil fuel lobbyists in multilateral climate negotiations. But above all, Australia, South Korea and Japan must embrace the diplomacy of the future: no new coal, oil, and gas.
