Could this be the end of camera manufacturing in China?

Could this be the end of camera manufacturing in China?
(Image credit: Fujifilm)

As governments around the world reel against the financial and economic impact of coronavirus, it's clear that we'll see ramifications rippling through the global economy for years to come. It's impossible to predict exactly what will happen, but with the recent news that Japan's economic stimulus package is apparently designed to incentivize Japanese companies to move factories out of China, it seems that we might see a significant change in the way camera manufacturers operate.

Almost every major camera and lens manufacturer is Japanese, including Canon, Nikon, Panasonic, Fujifilm, Sony, Sigma and Tamron. In fact, the only big names in cameras that don't hail from Japan are Leica and Hasselblad (neither of whom own a particularly large share in the consumer camera market). 

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Louise Carey

With over a decade of photographic experience, Louise arms Digital Camera World with a wealth of knowledge on photographic technique and know-how – something at which she is so adept that she's delivered workshops for the likes of ITV and Sue Ryder. Louise also brings years of experience as both a web and print journalist, having served as features editor for Practical Photography magazine and contributing photography tutorials and camera analysis to titles including Digital Camera Magazine and  Digital Photographer. Louise currently shoots with the Fujifilm X-T200 and the Nikon D800, capturing self-portraits and still life images, and is DCW's ecommerce editor, meaning that she knows good camera, lens and laptop deals when she sees them.