Japanese Carmakers Suspend Production in China

Japan's biggest automakers are idling some factories in China this week over fears that anti-Japanese protests could spread to their own workers.

Antagonism has been intensifying in recent weeks after the flare-up of a longstanding dispute about the control of the uninhabited Senkaku island chain in the East China Sea.

Protesters have smashed Japanese-brand cars and damaged dealerships. The China Automobile Dealers Assn. says many dealerships that sell Japanese brands are closed after some stores were vandalized.

Honda has idled five factories in China. Mazda, Nissan, Mitsubishi Motors and Nissan also have halted work at some facilities.

Other Japanese manufacturers and retailers are taking similar precautions. Some companies are urging their Japanese nationals not to go out alone or speak their native language loudly in public, The Nikkei reports.