Companies

Japanese Firms Ban Business Trips, Cancel Vacation Tours Amid Mideast Crisis

AP
Debris and damaged buildings are seen after a strike on a police station, during the ongoing U.S.-Israeli military campaign, in Tehran on Monday.

The Yomiuri Shimbun

13:32 JST, March 3, 2026

Japanese companies are scrambling to respond to the intensifying tension in the Middle East following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, with some firms already preventing their employees from going on business trips to the region.

Some Japanese firms with offices in the region have instructed their employees to stay home, and travel agencies have canceled tours to the Middle East.

Companies are trying to quickly gather information amid expectations that the situation could be prolonged.

Isuzu Motors Ltd., which has factories and sales bases in Saudi Arabia and Turkey, has banned nonessential business trips to the region since Sunday for the time being. The company said it is “assessing the potential impact” on its exports to Saudi Arabia, as the company’s goods pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

According to the Foreign Ministry, Japanese companies had about 990 bases in the Middle East as of October 2024, with the United Arab Emirates accounting for the largest share at 343 bases, mostly concentrated in Dubai.

Nomura Holdings Inc. has about 140 employees, including Japanese nationals, at its Dubai base, where employees have been asked to work from home.

Mizuho Securities Co. has asked its employees to avoid nonessential outings and is planning to allow them to voluntarily evacuate the UAE.

Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., a firm with a subsidiary in the Middle East, has instructed its employees to work from home through the end of the week.

Major travel agency H.I.S. Co. has canceled tours heading to Dubai or have layovers in the UAE or Qatar that were scheduled to depart through Thursday.

H.I.S. also canceled a tour to Jordan that was scheduled to depart on Monday, as the Foreign Ministry raised its travel advisory for the country to Level 2, which advises against nonessential trips.

Club Tourism International Inc. canceled all tours transiting through the Middle East that were scheduled to depart by Monday. About 120 people were expected to participate.

Regarding tours scheduled to depart on and after Tuesday, the company plans to respond appropriately, keeping safety as its highest priority.

JTB Corp. said flight cancellations have left some of its tour participants stranded in Dubai. While the agency declined to disclose details, including the number of people affected, a spokesperson noted that “safety has been ensured” for all involved.