Weak Yen Attracts Foreign Money

No cars on the road in the shopping area of Ginza on Sundays

The depressed yen has been a boon for tourism to Japan. People around the world have been flocking to the Land of the Rising Sun for great deals on everything from sushi to clothing. Tourists are lapping up the deals, but leaving those in the hospitality industry burned out.

For example, an izakaya dinner for three including six alcoholic drinks, sushi and king crab, the total bill came to around 28,000 yen (US$190), which is very reasonable by most standards, and for those from Hong Kong, cheap.

When it comes to shopping, bring your passport and the value added tax is deducted at the till -- no need to line up at the airport to process refunds. A friend went to the Ralph Lauren outlet store and bought two pairs of trousers, a pair of jeans and a hoodie for his five-year-old nephew which came to around 69,000 yen (US$470). 

I went on a shopping spree at Uniqlo and the total came to 17,240 -- but with my passport it was deducted further to 15,673 (US$106.80). That was for a pair of jeans, a cotton knit top, an adult T-shirt, three kids' T-shirts and two pairs of kids' shorts. 

Eager to get a pair of sneakers, I headed to well-known brand Onitsuka Tiger, the precursor to Asics. The two-storey shop was swarmed by tourists, grabbing whatever sample shoes they could get their hands on and asking staff to give them the footwear in their sizes.

I couldn't help but feel sorry for the staff, who probably by now are used to aggressive foreigners demanding these sneakers that they perceive as cool. For me though, they aren't comfortable footwear, as the heel area doesn't have much support.

Instead I wandered down the street to an unassuming shoe shop in the basement and there I could browse other sneaker brands without anyone fighting over them. I also had attentive service, trying several shoes before deciding on a pair. 

The Japanese-made sneakers were priced at 19,250 yen (US$130), and with duty free it came to 17,500 yen (US$119.27). 

While tourism does bring in foreign currency into Japan, investment does too.

A Chinese friend I met up with in Hong Kong told me her brother had moved to a small town outside Tokyo -- as an investor. He has put money into a school for disabled children in this town and in return he and his family are allowed to have residency there. 

Apparently they are learning Japanese, his young children go to school there, and they really like the laid-back lifestyle. 

Since 2023, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been strongly promoting foreign investment in Japan, with a goal of achieving a balance of 100 trillion yen by 2030. 

There also seems to be more foreigners living and working there, some doing manual labour like repaving roads, to making takoyaki (ball-shaped Japanese snacks usually filled with chopped octopus) in a street-side stall. 

As the population is shrinking because of the low birth rate, more help is needed, which is why the country has had to become more inviting to foreign workers; it has forced the previously insular, homogenous culture to be more accepting of others.

"Necessity is the author of change", says adventurer Tim Hansel. 

Indeed.