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.
Satoshi Iizuka
For Satoshi Iizuka's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
National Oct 1, 2013
Prank pictures on SNS cause storm
In a society where cleanliness is revered, a series of pictures showing unhygienic pranks involving food industry workers and customers has triggered a media storm after going viral on social-networking services. The posts reflect a broader trend among young Japanese Internet users for sharing ...
National Feb 23, 2013
Aging islanders long for Takeshima's return
With Friday the day that Japan commemorates incorporating Takeshima, a group of rocky Sea of Japan islets now controlled by South Korea, the aging residents of nearby islands have not given up hope that the disputed outcroppings may one day be returned to Japan.
National Mar 3, 2010
City sets up 'otaku' complex
KITAKYUSHU — The city of Kitakyushu is seeking to boost international exchange for “otaku” enthusiasts of Japanese subculture by creating an arts-business complex including a “manga” comic museum and a variety of shops by around 2012. The city will try to set up the ...
National Jan 13, 2010
Makers of traditional cotton textiles aim for markets abroad
KITAKYUSHU — Kitakyushu, with its eyes on foreign markets, is reviving the manufacture of a once-vanished traditional cotton textile. Kokura-ori is a strong but soft cotton fabric with vertical stripes of alternating colors. The weaving originated in the Buzen Kokura region during the Edo ...