Chinanews.com, Taipei, November 23. The latest statistics from the financial affairs department of the Taiwan authorities show that due to the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the number of crane machine shops in Taiwan has dropped significantly.
According to reports from Taiwanese media such as the Central News Agency, United News Network, and China Times News, the number of crane machine shops in Taiwan has dropped from 9,727 in April this year to less than 9,000 at the end of August.
Take Taipei City as an example. In December 2019, the number of claw machine shops in the city was 610. As of the end of August this year, the city had reduced to 535 stores, a 4-year low, with an average monthly net decrease of 3.75.
Analysts pointed out that, affected by the epidemic, the number of foreign tourists has dropped significantly, which has had an impact on the entire tourism industry and also affected crane machine merchants.
Under strict anti-epidemic policies, businesses not only have limited business hours, but also arrange personnel to clean and disinfect on time, which increases operating costs.
In addition, for the crane-grabbing merchants in the scenic area, the trend of picking up dolls has faded and the higher rents are also important reasons for the reduction of shops.
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