The Japan Times - News On Japan, Business News, Opinion, Sports, Entertainment And More

Tokyo Weather

Subscribe
Digital Print

Trump tariffs

Rice crisis

Ukraine

Latest News

Deep Dive

Today's print edition

Subscribe for more access

Automaker Nissan's headquarters in Yokohama

BUSINESS / Companies

Struggling Nissan considers closing two plants in Kanagawa

The possible closure of the plants in the prefecture — Nissan's birthplace — seems certain to provoke a backlash from local communities.

Automaker Nissan's headquarters in Yokohama

An oil refinery behind Hamadera Park in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture

JAPAN

One dead after possible gas leak at ENEOS refinery

The company believes they may have inhaled hydrogen sulfide gas, according to informed sources.

Defense Minister Gen Nakatani speaks during a news conference at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo on Friday.

JAPAN

Possible remains of missing ASDF plane crew member found

The defense minister said that body parts possibly of a missing crew member of a Self-Defense Force trainer jet that crashed into a lake have been found.

Houses along canal with heavy steam and mist in Beppu, Oita Prefecture. The Meteorological Agency announced the arrival of rainy season in the southern part of the Kyushu region, making it the first time the season began in the area before any other region since records began in 1951.

JAPAN

Japan's rainy season begins in southern Kyushu

This is the first time since statistics began in 1951 that southern Kyushu has entered the rainy season earlier than any other region in Japan.

Kyoto's gaming landscape is dominated by Nintendo's headquarters, but a contingent of foreign-born indie developers is also working in the gaming giant's shadow.

LIFE / Digital

In Nintendo’s backyard, foreign indie game devs are thriving

By Gendel Gento

“Of course, we’re all in the shadow of Nintendo, but we’re also here because of Nintendo,” says one British indie game developer.

Kyoto's gaming landscape is dominated by Nintendo's headquarters, but a contingent of foreign-born indie developers is also working in the gaming giant's shadow.

Satoko Sodeno moves into temporary housing and arranges her belongings in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, on Saturday.

Iwate wildfire victims begin moving into temporary housing

Seven housing units were built on the grounds of a former elementary school in Ofunato's Akasaki district.

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency President Hiroshi Yamakawa speaks at a press briefing in Tokyo on Friday.

Japan remains committed to moon missions as Trump cuts NASA budget, JAXA chief says

By Kantaro Komiya

U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed a $6 billion cut to NASA's budget could upend the Artemis program to return people to the moon.

The emperor and the shogun: A power struggle across the centuries

By Michael Hoffman

Pension bill makes it to parliament after two-month delay

By Gabriele Ninivaggi

Japan announces fresh measures to improve supply of rice

Finances are tight for dual-income households too, survey finds

By Jessica Speed

Wholesalers added ¥7,593 on average to their selling prices for stockpiled rice, far more than the ¥2,206 to ¥4,689 added for the 2022 rice.

Wholesalers may be behind elevated retail rice prices

Larger gaps between wholesalers' procurement and selling prices, which represent their costs and profits, may be a factor, a government survey has suggested.

Moody's first gave the United States its pristine "Aaa" rating in 1919 and is the last of the three major credit agencies to downgrade it.

Moody's cuts America's pristine credit rating, citing rising debt

The move that could complicate U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to cut taxes and send ripples through global markets.

Fuji Media Holdings posts net loss for first time since going public

By Yukana Inoue

Tesla took back leased cars for use as 'robotaxis,' but sold them instead

By Chris Kirkham and Abhirup Roy

Japan’s steep bond curve divides investors and challenges economy

By Mia Glass and Masaki Kondo

Hacking of trading accounts in Japan spreads to midsized firms

By Ryo Horiuchi

A Palestinian man carries the body of a child killed in Israeli strikes,‏ in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip, on Friday.

Rescuers say 100 dead as Israel launches fresh Gaza offensive

The army said on Telegram it had begun the "initial stages" of the offensive, known as Operation Gideon's Chariots.

U.S. President Donald Trump lashed out Friday at the Supreme Court after it blocked his bid to resume deportations of alleged Venezuelan gang members, saying the justices are "not allowing me to do what I was elected to do."

U.S. Supreme Court maintains block on Trump deportations under wartime law

The top court faulted his administration for seeking to remove the Venezuelan migrants without adequate legal process.

North Korea's Kim oversees air drills, calls for stepped-up war preparations

Canberra slams Russian jailing of Australian who fought for Ukraine

Trump reshapes U.S. Mideast policy. Can deals work instead?

By Danny Kemp

Ex-South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol leaves conservative party

Maserati's Stoffel Vandoorne holds up the trophy after winning the Tokyo E-Prix on Saturday, alongside Nissan's Oliver Rowland (left) and McLaren's Taylor Barnard.

Stoffel Vandoorne rides perfect strategy to Tokyo E-Prix win

By Joel Tansey

The Belgian’s triumph was to the dismay of the loyal Nissan fans at the track, with championship leader Oliver Rowland slipping down to second after starting on pole.

Shohei Ohtani connects on two home runs to help Dodgers rout A's

Colts apologize to Tyreek Hill and Microsoft over schedule release video

Jannik Sinner makes statement by demolishing Casper Ruud to reach semifinals

Stephen Curry excited about Warriors' future despite playoff exit

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick speaks in the Oval Office after President Donald Trump announced a trade deal with the U.K. on May 8. The agreement is far from a win for London, which has chosen deference over strength in dealing with Washington's bullishness.

Lessons from the U.S.-U.K. trade deal: Don’t appease a bully

Thomas O. Falk

The tariff agreement signed between London and Washington does little to boost the U.K. economy and, despite appearances, is a diplomatic defeat for Prime Minister Starmer.

Don’t overreact to the consumption tax debate

U.S. citizenship could soon look very different

By Patricia Lopez

The U.S. will never win a trade war with China

By Kuni Miyake

Elections are fast approaching, and none of the big parties are ready

By Edo Naito

Ice calves off from the Perito Moreno glacier into the Lago Argentino (Argentine Lake), in the Parque Nacional Los Glaciares, near the city of El Calafate in the Patagonian province of Santa Cruz, Argentina, on April 21

Huge ice falls at Argentina's Perito Moreno glacier stir awe and concern

By Bernat Parera

Recently the size of the ice chunks breaking off — a process called "calving" — has been starting to alarm local guides and glaciologists.

Australian seaweed farm tackles livestock burps to combat climate change

By Gregory PLESSE

Indians buy 14 million air conditioners a year, and need many more

By Abhaya SRIVASTAVA

As world heats up, U.N. cools itself the cool way — with water

By Amelie Bottollier-Depois

World's richest 10% caused two-thirds of global warming, study finds

By Marlowe Hood

Vocaloid idol Hatsune Miku and kabuki actor Nakamura Shido II first performed together in 2016. This month, they’re reviving the show for the Osaka World Expo.

Traditional performing arts are plugging into modern audiences

By Phoebe Amoroso

Noh and kabuki are getting an image update by teaming up with pop culture figures such as Vocaloid idol Hatsune Miku and DJ Ken Ishii.

Netflix to stream Studio Ghibli's 'Grave of the Fireflies' in Japan

‘Kaneko's Commissary’ explores prison culture from the outside in

By Mark Schilling

Emerging Asian artists converge at the 'world’s most beautiful museum'

By Kim Kahan

‘Jinsei’: Ryuya Suzuki’s solo animation is a singular debut

By James Hadfield

A few tweaks to the conversations you learn in your Japanese class will help you sound like a native when you step out the door.

Closing the gap between what you learn and what you say in Japanese

By Yuko Tamura

When trying to sound natural in Japanese, sometimes you just need to know a single key word or phrase.

Fighting Osaka Expo fatigue? Walk the 21-km Loop Line for a cure.

By Edward J. Taylor

Speak like you scroll: A roundup of recent Japanese slang

By Yuko Tamura

What comes after 100?

By Tomoko Otake

Sculpted waves, sleek updos: Showa hairstyles are back in fashion

By Carol R.H. Malasig

Ayano Kikuchi began practicing yoga in 2014 to alleviate her chronic back pain, and now shares her knowledge with the Karuizawa community as the manager of W Tree House.

Ayano Kikuchi: ‘People need to take care of themselves holistically’

By Olivia Boissel

How a corporate office worker in Tokyo became a yoga studio manager in Karuizawa

A new chapter for a gentle dog

Kotomi Li: 'I refuse to choose death'

By Kat Joplin

Reclaiming Sanya, one meal at a time

By Kim Kahan

Arunima Mazumdar: ‘Japanese literature has a niche but deeply engaged readership in India’

By Megha Wadhwa

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.

What comes after 100?

By Tomoko Otake

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER

international-reports

By Synergy Media Specialists

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after