FX.co ★ Japan reports tourism surplus

In 2013, Japan registered the first surplus in the balance of overseas and domestic tourism as the yen weakened and trips to Japan became more affordable for foreigners, Bloomberg says.
Making the country more touristically attractive has been one of the national government’s priorities. The Cabinet reckons on tripling the number of visitors by 2030 through a series of measures such as visa regime loosening for people from Vietnam, Indonesia, and other states.
More than a half of tourists come to Japan from the neighboring countries, South Korea, Taiwan, and the People’s Republic of China. As personal incomes in East Asia are increasing, Japan welcomes more and more visitors.
This year the number of comers from the above-mentioned nations is seen to hit the record, considering over 5 million people traveled to Japan in its first half.
During the last 20 years Japan has been suffering from economic stagnation that is accompanied by deflation from time to time. Shinzo Abe's Cabinet has been struggling to eradicate these problems.