‘Catnomics’: how Japan’s feline fixation has become an industry worth billions

Their influence is evident in every corner of society, the imperial family owns some, and Tokyo even has its own ‘cat town’

Feline features stare out from the covers of umpteen novels, they have an officially designated day devoted to their mystique and popularity, and have outnumbered dogs as pets for a decades.

The influence of cats is evident across every corner of Japanese society, with a recent report crediting them with generating an expected ¥3tn ($18.8bn) in value to the Japanese economy this year – a phenomenon dubbed “catnomics”.