Economy | ANALYSIS
Households to take hit from tax hike
by Tomoko Otake
The consumption tax increase will hit every household in Japan hard, with many people’s financial future hanging on whether their wages rise enough to offset the hike's impact.
Michael A. Fletcher
For Michael A. Fletcher's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Social Issues Aug 30, 2013
Black-white economic gap in U.S. is still as wide as ever
When President Barack Obama spoke at the Lincoln Memorial on Wednesday to commemorate the 1963 March on Washington, he symbolized part of the complicated story of America’s racial progress in the past half a century. Can there be more convincing testimony to the breathtaking ...
World Aug 12, 2013
Presidents' grand plans fail in Detroit
During the Nixon years, Detroit’s business elite laid plans for the glittering Renaissance Center retail and office complex. The Ford and Carter administrations brought the “People Mover,” an elevated rail loop around downtown that hardly anybody rides today. Other presidential administrations introduced enterprise zone ...
Business Jul 19, 2013
Detroit files for biggest municipal bankruptcy in American history
Detroit files the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history, marking a new low in a decline that has left the Motor City bleeding revenue and choking city services.
Economy Jun 3, 2013
Low interest rates spell doom for some pension plans in U.S.
It was no small matter for the ILM Group’s executives when they froze the pension plan that has provided retirement security for the firm’s employees since 1947. The financial pressure of maintaining the plan had been mounting on the small insurer for years. But ...