
Record number of foreign passengers used Narita Airport in June
The increase was led by flights to and from China, Narita Airport said.
The total number of international passengers, including Japanese, at the airport in Chiba Prefecture, was up 2% in June, at 2,670,104.
In the January-June period, the number of non-Japanese international passengers using the airport climbed 15% from a year earlier to 12,224,789, a record for the first half, thanks to brisk demand for short-distance flights within Asia and a weak yen.
The overall number of international passengers, including Japanese, at the airport jumped 12% to 17,333,344.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


NHK
2 hours ago
- NHK
Prices of more than 1,000 food items rising in August in Japan
Food inflation is accelerating in Japan, driven mainly by higher ingredient costs. Private research firm Teikoku Databank polled 195 major domestic food makers. It found that price hikes averaging 11 percent are planned for 1,010 items in August. Food prices are rising faster than last year for the eighth month in a row. Seasonings, including spices and broths, account for the largest number at 470. This is followed by 281 dairy items like milk and yoghurt, and 109 processed-food products, such as frozen foods. The research firm cites surging material prices and higher production costs as contributing factors. Teikoku Databank expects hikes for more than 19,000 items by November. That would be over 50 percent more products priced higher than the total number in 2024. Furthermore, the number of food items in line for price hikes in October is likely to top 3,000. The figure is the second largest after that in April. The research firm says some manufacturers are taking steps in anticipation of further rises in costs, making it highly likely food inflation will continue as a long-term trend.


Japan Times
3 hours ago
- Japan Times
BOJ watchers bring forward next rate hike call after trade deals
Bank of Japan watchers brought forward their forecast for when they expect the next interest rate hike, after clarity over trade increased with U.S. President Donald Trump announcing deals, including one with Japan. Some 42% of 45 economists surveyed by Bloomberg anticipate the move in October, jumping from 32% in the previous survey. Analyst views were last canvassed before the announcement of Japan's trade pact with the U.S. on July 22, and last week's BOJ policy decision. Those predicting it in January slightly dropped to a third, while those expecting December doubled to 11%. No one foresees action at the next meeting in September as their base case, but in a risk scenario, about a quarter said the hike could come as soon as next month. Some 60% said the next hike could come as early as October. The results show that many BOJ watchers are convinced the next increase in borrowing costs is coming closer, even after Gov. Kazuo Ueda signaled caution on Thursday. Analysts pointed to the fact that the BOJ upgraded its inflation forecasts more than expected and raised its risk balance view as evidence the bank is making progress toward a rate move. "This meeting laid the groundwork for the next hike,' Kento Minami, senior economist at Daiwa Securities, wrote in his survey response. "Considering upside price risks from food and potentially a weak yen, the condition is suited for another move this year once resilience in corporate activity is confirmed.' The BOJ boosted its price projection sharply to 2.7% for this fiscal year from 2.2% in its quarterly outlook report released Thursday. The bank now sees the risk for prices as generally balanced after seeing only downside risks three months ago. Still, the hawkish signals in the report were toned down during Ueda's post-meeting news conference. The governor repeatedly highlighted the fact that though a little less than before, uncertainty remains high, and indicated little urgency toward a hike by saying there's a low risk of falling behind the curve in responding to inflation. Naka Matsuzawa, chief strategist at Nomura Securities, concluded that Ueda's news conference and the BOJ's statements were hawkish overall, partly because it's natural for a central banker to deny the likelihood of falling behind the curve as it's taboo to be in that position. Some 49% of surveyed economists said that Ueda's remarks at his news conference were neutral, while 44% said it was dovish. Only 5% said it was hawkish. The comments led the yen to break a key psychological level of ¥150 per dollar, reaching its weakest point since March on Friday. After yen weakness has played a major role in pushing the BOJ toward a policy shift in the past, analysts say it could happen again this time. Some 44% said the possibility is rising for the yen to become a key factor to nudge the bank toward another hike, while 35% didn't see such an increase. About a fifth said it's hard to tell. "If there's considerable yen depreciation, there's a risk scenario where the BOJ may opt for an earlier rate hike while highlighting upside movements in underlying inflation,' said Takeshi Yamaguchi, chief Japan economist at Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities. In addition to still unclear economic pressure from tariffs and a weak yen, many analysts cited political uncertainty as a potential hurdle for the central bank as it navigates monetary policy. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba is facing calls to resign after he faced a historic defeat in the Upper House election on July 20, losing a majority in both houses of parliament for his ruling coalition. Some 71% of the surveyed economists said that there is a risk that Ueda's board won't be able to raise rates this year if Ishiba is replaced by a monetary easing advocate, while 19% said that won't be the case. With Ueda's repeated message that he wants to parse data broadly and carefully before considering the next hike, some BOJ watchers doubt whether the BOJ will have enough data on hand to say another rate change is warranted this year. "It takes time to confirm the impact of tariffs in data, even if the effects end up being smaller than expected,' said Shigeto Nagai, former head of BOJ's international department and currently the head of Oxford Economics in Japan. "It's impossible to raise rates again this year.'


The Mainichi
4 hours ago
- The Mainichi
Japan content platform Note to let writers earn from AI training with opt-in program
TOKYO -- The operator of Note, an online platform for posting text and audio, will allow users to provide written content as training data to generative artificial intelligence (AI) companies, and compensate the creators using its revenue starting in August. While generative AI developers and media organizations have often clashed over copyright issues, with some cases even leading to lawsuits, collaboration between the two parties is now becoming more common both in Japan and overseas. Note allows individuals and businesses to freely post and sell text, manga, videos and audio. Since launching in April 2014, the platform has accumulated over 60 million pieces of content. As of June 2025, it has garnered 10 million registered users. The new initiative only applies to text, and content creators can freely choose whether to allow their work to be used for training AIs. Tokyo-based Note Inc. conducted three trial runs with its members starting in February. The trials received positive feedback from several thousands of users, including those who commented, "I feel like my creative work is being properly valued," and, "This opens up new possibilities for earning income." Based on this, the company expects many creators to support the initiative. Regarding Note's profit-sharing approach, CEO Sadaaki Kato said, "As generative AI becomes more widespread, we wanted to create an ecosystem where permission and compensation are clearly defined, and where creators can earn revenue."