Shanghai’s Japanese community count cost of coronavirus
- One restaurant owner says the impact is the Covid-19 outbreak on business is a bad as a wave of anti-Japanese protests in 2012
- The city is home to one of the world’s largest populations of Japanese expatriates
In the nine years since Taniguchi Yoshitada first opened his restaurant in Shanghai the biggest challenge he had to face was a wave of anti-Japanese protests, but now the Covid-19 outbreak is threatening to deal his business the same blow.
After the start of the protests in 2012 protests, triggered when the Japanese government bought the disputed Diaoyu Islands, he saw his revenues plunge and on some days he would only see a single customer.
Although most of his customers were members of the local Japanese community, they tended to stay inside as a wave of anti-Japanese sentiment swept the country.
Now the epidemic has had a similar impact. Although restaurants in the city were allowed to stay open throughout the outbreak, most took a serious hit as people stayed at home and avoided public areas.
“Most of my guests are Japanese executives who host their clients in my restaurant. Almost all of those events are cancelled,” he said.