Record 56 Pct of Taiwanese Pick Japan as Favorite Country

Taipei, July 19 (Jiji Press)--A poll has shown that a record 56 pct of Taiwanese people picked Japan as the foreign country or region they like most, the Taipei office of Japan's Interchange Association said Tuesday. Japan has earned the top spot for the fifth straight time since the 2008 start of the poll, conducted by the association acting as the de facto Japanese embassy in order to survey Taiwanese public sentiment toward Japan. In the latest survey, Japan was far more popular than other countries. Second-ranking China had 6 pct support, followed by 5 pct for the United States and 2 pct for Singapore. Support for Japan shot up from 43 pct in the previous survey, conducted in 2012. Young respondents aged between 20 and 39 had an especially favorable impression of Japan. Asked which country Taiwan should have the closest relationship with, 39 pct chose Japan, topping China for the first time. China won 22 pct support. Japan was also cited as the most popular overseas travel destination and a majority of respondents said the state of the Japan-Taiwan relationship is in good shape, according to the survey. "An increase in people traveling between Japan and Taiwan may have had positive effects on the results," an association official said. The survey was conducted between Jan. 15 and Feb. 2, covering some 1,000 people aged between 20 and 80. END