The consumption tax increase next April will hit every household in Japan hard, with many people's financial future hanging on whether their wages rise enough to offset the impact of the hike, experts say.

Consumption tax raise misdirected

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe confirms that the government will raise the sales tax from 5 to 8 percent beginning in April. But will the tax hike lead to an economic downturn

Lifestyle | CHILD'S PLAY

A welcome sign: Tantrums may be on the way out

by Danielle Demetriou

Every parent is all too familiar with The Tantrum. The screaming, the flailing arms, the angry head butting — and the timing (normally in the most inconvenient public place possible).

Issues | JUST BE CAUSE

Triumph of Tokyo Olympic bid sends wrong signal to Japan's resurgent right

by Debito Arudou

International events undermine Japan's democracy. Shame on the International Olympic Committee for being a party to it.

Art

Kohfukuji temple: under divine protection

by C.B. Liddell

Tucked away behind the main museums in Ueno, the Tokyo University Art Museum may not be on most people’s radar, but it is definitely one of the city’s top museums in terms of curatorial quality. Whenever I go there, I am always delighted by ...

MLB

Pirates roar past Reds

Francisco Liriano showed up at PNC Park on Tuesday afternoon in a suit with his suitcase packed for a trip St. Louis. The message reverberated through the Pittsburgh Pirates clubhouse. After 21 years away from the playoffs, it was time for the best story ...

World

Exercise rivals drugs for cutting death risk

AFP-JIJI

PARIS – Exercise may be at least as effective as some drugs in reducing the risk of death in stroke patients or people with heart disease, a study published Wednesday said.

Researchers from the London School of Economics, Harvard Medical School and Stanford University School of Medicine compared the findings of several studies into the effectiveness of exercise versus drugs in people with coronary heart disease, stroke patients, people with prediabetes and those with heart failure.

They analyzed the results of 305 randomized controlled trials involving 339,274 individuals.

The data trawl “found no statistically detectable differences” between exercise and drug treatment in reducing mortality for people with coronary heart disease or prediabetes symptoms, according to a statement released by the British Medical Journal, which published the study online.

In stroke patients, the team found that exercise was more effective than drugs, while medicine worked better at treating heart failure.

TOKYO (4 a.m.)

News

Economy | ANALYSIS

Households to take hit from tax hike

by Tomoko Otake