‘Unwelcome and unsafe’: Why Japanese companies are retreating from China at a record pace

Japanese companies are leaving China in record numbers, as a slowing Chinese economy and a diplomatic freeze force businesses to reassess their presence in the world's second-largest economy. The number of Japanese companies operating in China fell to a historic low, standing at 10,118 as of June, according to Teikoku Databank , a corporate credit research firm in Japan. That's down 22% from the previous survey held in June 2024 and about 30% below the 2012 peak, and the lowest since Teikoku began tracking the data in 2010.