Number of Japanese in China falls by 10%

The number of Japanese people living in China for more than three months or permanently residing declined by more than 10 percent year-on-year from October 2012 to October 2013, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

Experts said the drop was a consequence of the increasingly strained diplomatic ties between Beijing and Tokyo. However they expect that the number will gradually stabilize because the countries are interdependent in today's globalized world.

The report said 135,000 Japanese were living in China for more than three months or residing permanently on Oct 1, 2013, a year-on-year decrease of 10.2 percent.