Japan is seeing a clear recovery in tax-free spending by Chinese visitors, which was the key driver of consumption among inbound tourists before the coronavirus pandemic.
International tax-free service operator Global Blue says Chinese tourists visiting Japan spent 25 percent more on tax-free goods in October than in the same month in 2019. That's on a same-store comparison.
Tax-free purchases were down 45 percent from 2019 as Chinese tourist numbers have yet to bounce back to pre-pandemic levels. But average spending per purchase was up 85 percent in yen terms to over 91,000 yen, or about 600 dollars.
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