Xi Reins In Nationalism as Chinese Consumers Embrace Japan Goods

When China’s ties with Japan last spiraled over a decade ago, Beijing fueled nationwide boycotts of Japanese brands and even street protests. This time around, President Xi Jinping is taking a more measured approach — for now, at least.

As Chinese fighter jets trained radars on Japanese planes over the high seas of Okinawa last weekend, diners in Shanghai were flocking to the opening of two sushi restaurants. Wait lines as long as 14 hours trailed outside one of the conveyor-belt joints, as Japanese brand Sushiro expanded its stable of roughly 70 restaurants in China.