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BUSINESS

Economy

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends the launch of the Global Biofuels Alliance at the G20 summit in New Delhi in September 2023.

BUSINESS / Economy

Jul 29, 2025

Delayed pricing policy for cleaner ethanol keeps India burning food for fuel

By Bhasker Tripathi

The Indian government wants petrol sold in the country to contain 20% ethanol by October 2025, and has ramped up production by diverting food crops, but could use waste instead.

Hideyuki Okamoto, ice pop maker Akagi Nyugyo's marketing team leader, says the public is more accepting of price hikes as he holds the company's flagship Garigari-kun ice pop.

BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS

Jul 29, 2025

Enough apologies: How Japan is shaking off its price hike phobia

By Makiko Yamazaki and Takahiko Wada

A shift in consumer mindset about such increases is driven by the biggest pay hikes in three decades and has given companies more confidence to pass on rising costs.

Prolonged high prices for food and other goods have pushed down consumer sentiment and real wages, according to the Annual Report on the Japanese Economy and Public Finance for fiscal 2025.

BUSINESS / Economy

Jul 29, 2025

Japan should take all possible measures to raise wages, white paper says

Prolonged high prices for food and other goods have pushed down consumer sentiment and real wages, while predictions for continued price climbs have curbed consumption.

A Hyundai Merchant Marine container ship under construction at the HJ Shipbuilding & Construction shipyard in Busan, South Korea, on July 22

BUSINESS / Economy

Jul 28, 2025

South Korea pitches Trump on shipyards for last-minute trade deal

While details remain unclear, Yonhap News reported that South Korea has proposed a multibillion dollar project dubbed "Make American Shipbuilding Great Again.”

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (left) shakes hands with economic revitalization minister Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief tariff negotiator, at the Osaka Expo in the city of Osaka on July 19.

BUSINESS / Economy

Jul 28, 2025

Japan expects only 1% to 2% of $550 billion U.S. fund to be investment

By Yoshiaki Nohara

The bulk of the fund, agreed as part of Japan's trade deal with the U.S., will consist of loans, says chief tariff negotiator Ryosei Akazawa.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues are deliberating on interest rates this week.

BUSINESS / Economy

Jul 28, 2025

Pressure mounts on Fed chief Powell in tee-up to GDP and jobs data

By Vince Golle

Fed officials are meeting this week as the government issues reports on gross domestic product, employment and the central bank’s preferred price metrics.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (left) and U.S. President Donald Trump speak to the press following their meeting in Turnberry, Scotland, on Sunday.

BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS

Jul 28, 2025

Out-gunned Europe accepts least-worst U.S. trade deal

The agreement on a blanket 15% tariff is a reality check on the aspirations of the bloc to become an economic power able to stand up to the likes of the U.S. or China.

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.

With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear

By Jason Coskrey

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Ishii Iron Works remakes self for workers, new energy

Ishii Iron Works remakes self for workers, new energy

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