Japan's tourism business is holding up even after Chinese visitors dropped by half, which is good news for Japan and a sign of how much Taiwanese travellers now matter.

• Chinese visits to Japan fell more than 50% in both the first and second quarters as relations between Tokyo and Beijing cooled.
• Total foreign visitors barely moved, down only about 2% in the first half of the year.
• Taiwan led the gap-filling, with Taiwanese spending in Japan jumping the most of any country.
• South Korea, the US, Australia and European countries also spent more, and 15 markets set June visitor records.
• Overall tourist spending still came in above last year despite the loss of Chinese shoppers.

Outlook: If China-Japan relations stay frozen, Japan's tourism industry looks set to keep leaning on Taiwan, South Korea and Western travellers to hold up sales.