Jan. foreign entries to Japan near 1.5 mil. amid Lunar New Year boost

The estimated number of foreign visitors to Japan in January increased by some 130,000 from the previous month to almost 1.5 million entries, government data showed Wednesday, thanks to a boost from the Lunar New Year holiday and eased coronavirus measures for many countries.

But while travelers from East Asia, including South Korea and Taiwan, represented about 1 million visitors, the total was still 44.3 percent below pre-pandemic January 2019.

Chinese visitors totaled 31,200, down 95.9 percent from the same month four years prior as the Japanese government enhanced border controls for peopl...