Global businesses start to shun Japan over growing outbreak

Feb 20, 2020 | News On Japan

Feb 20, 2020 (Nikkei) - Multinational companies are avoiding travel to and from Japan over fears the country could be the next hot spot in the coronavirus outbreak.

Luxury fashion house Prada has postponed its first-ever fashion show in Japan scheduled for May 21. "This decision was made as a precautionary measure as well as an act of responsibility and respect for all the people working on and planning to attend" the show, the Italian brand said Tuesday.

Prada is eager to tap rising demand for luxury goods in Asia, and held a menswear show in Shanghai in June. It considers Japan a strategic market, and plans to look into a new date and venue after assessing the impact of the coronavirus.

The decision came as a World Health Organization report published Tuesday placed Japan's coronavirus patient count at 65 -- the highest in the world after China and Singapore.

There are also signs of a push to limit travel not only to, but also from, Japan. "We are seeing companies in several countries besides China, such as India, that are refusing business trips from Japanese partners," Japan Foreign Trade Council Chairman Kuniharu Nakamura told reporters Wednesday.

"This reminds us again of the severity of the impact," he said.

Experts worry that Japan could face an increase in homegrown cases that cannot be traced back to a specific patient. Coronavirus infections have been confirmed across the country, from Hokkaido in the north to Okinawa in the south.

Typhoon No. 31 Forecast to Approach Japan's Pacific Islands

Typhoon No. 31 (In-fa) has intensified into a very strong storm over the western Pacific, with the Japan Meteorological Agency reporting at 3:45 a.m. on October 27 that the typhoon was nearly stationary near the Marshall Islands, carrying maximum sustained winds of 45 meters per second and gusts reaching 60 meters per second, as forecasts point to a possible approach toward Japan's Ogasawara Islands on October 31.

Japan Faces Further Travel Disruption as Storm Moves East

Travel disruption continued into Tuesday, October 27, as Japan began recovering from heavy rain and rough seas caused by the remnants of Typhoon No. 30, with ferry cancellations confirmed in Nagasaki Prefecture and railway operators monitoring the effects of overnight rainfall in central and eastern Japan.

Controversial Penalty Decision Ends Tokyo High School Soccer Match

A controversial penalty shootout decision during the Tokyo qualifiers for Japan's National High School Soccer Championship on October 24 has sparked debate after a team that believed it had secured victory was forced to continue playing and eventually lost, raising questions about whether a hole in the goal net contributed to an incorrect ruling.

Kanagawa Maglev Station Platform Unveiled for First Time

The underground platform of the planned Kanagawa Prefecture Station on Japan's Chuo Shinkansen maglev line was opened to the public for the first time on October 24, offering visitors a rare glimpse of the high-speed railway project under construction in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, with demand for the tour exceeding available places by approximately 12 times.

Japan's Terra Drone Supplies Weapons to Ukraine as Russia Warns of Retaliation

Japanese drone manufacturer Terra Drone has delivered interceptor drones to Ukraine's Ministry of Defense for the first time, prompting Russia to threaten retaliatory measures on October 21, as Japan considers expanding domestic drone production and strengthening its coastal defenses through thousands of unmanned aircraft.

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