Tokyo DispatchJapan, in EnglishCompanies operating in China dropped by 2,916 to 10,118 as of June 2026, a survey by Teikoku Databank shows, as Beijing's pressure over the Taiwan statement takes a business toll.
The government will not adopt the "threat" label floated within the ruling parties as it revises its national security strategy and two related documents by year's end.
A commentator says the episode shows Japanese firms absorbing real business damage from a political information campaign they have no part in.
Seven days after the first anniversary of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Taiwan remarks, China's export controls on rare earths are still squeezing manufacturers — and a METI request to business groups has left executives unsure what Tokyo wants.
A year after Sanae Takaichi said a Taiwan contingency could trigger collective self-defense, a former foreign minister carried a compromise to Beijing and was told the leaders must fix it.
A party-affiliated reporter says a Global Times editorial went too far in tying the launch of Japan's new intelligence agency to Unit 731, a sign that the pressure to draw traffic is shaping the coverage.
China keeps pressing Tokyo to retract the prime minister's answer on Taiwan, while telling Japanese business it remains a valued economic partner.
