As anti-Japan protests in China rage with no end in sight, Japanese businesses there are seeing their operations disrupted, while government officials seek to limit the damage to economic ties.
"The share that Japan and China hold in the global economy is overwhelming," Finance Minister Jun Azumi said at a news conference Friday. "We must take a rational approach on the issue," he added, expressing the wish to preserve business relationships.
What began as a territorial row over the sovereignty of the Senkaku Islands, known as Diaoyu in China, threatens to fray economic ties between Tokyo and Beijing.