Chinese Fan Cools Japanse Summer

Hit by the worst nuclear energy crisis, Japan will now face another natural disaster, sizzling summer and soaring heat stroke patients.

Due to the shutdown of nuclear power generators, the government has imposed a limit on energy use, the directly impacted will be millions of citizens who face a summer that has kicked into a high gear since early May and has not shown mercy. Kumagaya in Saitama recorded 39.8C on June 24, and Japan authorities reported the heat wave is the highest in 50 years.

The number of patients who suffer from heat stroke and had to be delivered to hospitals are increasing by several folds, around 3,000 had been rushed to hospitals nationwide last week.

One relief is electric fans that were made in China. As Japanese makers have shifted the production to China, this May has seen 3.21 million fans cleared Tokyo Customs. Even so, residents in some areas of Japan still find no fans left in their electronic store shelves.

From rare earth ban to toxic frozen gyoza (dumplings), who could have think electronic fan become another hot item on Sino-Japan trade list. However, this time is different: Japanese are eager to embrace for made-in-china goods, either with little or no choice.

(I will soon hit the road, mostly in Ghana for the next one month and half. After that, I will transition to Dhaka, Bangladesh. The posting therefore will be sporadic, if none at all during this transition period. I wish everyone a good summer. Stay cool!)