September 2009
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Editorials Sep 30, 2009

No letup on stimulus policies

The Group of 20 leaders from developed and emerging economies held their third summit in Pittsburgh, Pa., last week, about a year since the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. set off the current worldwide financial crisis. While there are signs of economic recovery, ...

National Sep 30, 2009

Murder suspected in Bali tourist's death

JAKARTA (Kyodo) A 33-year-old Tokyo woman was found dead on the Indonesian resort island of Bali and injuries to the body indicate she may have been murdered, according to local reports Tuesday. Wilmar Marpaung, detective unit chief at the Bali Police Headquarters, said Rika Sano's ...

Commentary / World Sep 30, 2009

China worries neighbors as its navy comes of age

by Loro Horta

SINGAPORE — China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has made great strides in recent years as it seeks to come of age. While moving to demonstrate its clout, it also seems to recognize the need to reassure others that the intentions behind its modernization ...

Editorials Sep 30, 2009

LDP stakes future on new leader

The Liberal Democratic Party has elected former Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki as its new president. By garnering about 60 percent of the total vote — 120 of the 199 LDP Diet member votes, and 180 of the 300 votes distributed among the LDP's local ...

Olympics Sep 30, 2009

Igaya says final presentations key

by Jeremy Walker

Japan's highest-ranked sports official in the Olympic movement, Chiharu Igaya, believes the four cities bidding for the 2016 Olympic Games are "neck and neck" entering the home straight. Igaya, one of four vice presidents of the International Olympic Committee, thinks the final presentations of Tokyo, ...

National Sep 30, 2009

Teachers to join Antarctic research

An elementary school teacher and a high school teacher will join Japan's Antarctic research expedition team to give students back home lessons by satellite about the nature of the icy continent, a research group organizing the team said Tuesday. The National Institute of Polar Research ...

Language | BILINGUAL Sep 30, 2009

Learn the coded language all Japanese know

by Mark Schreiber

Encoding and decoding may be almost as old as writing itself. This past summer I read "Treason by the Book," a fascinating work by Yale University professor Jonathan D. Spence set in 18th-century China. It seems a scholar named Zha Siting (1664-1727) was charged with ...

Business Sep 30, 2009

Debt relief 'urged' for small firms

Kohei Otsuka, senior vice minister for financial services, said Tuesday that the government will prepare a bill to urge financial institutions to ease loan conditions for small firms, but the law would not have compulsory power. The move indicates that the government is unlikely to ...

National Sep 30, 2009

Stars reprise 'Winter Sonata' roles for 'anime'

South Korean actors Bae Yong Joon and Choi Ji Woo, who rose to fame in Japan for their leading roles in the drama "Winter Sonata," expressed hope Tuesday that their Japanese fans will enjoy the animated version of the series to be released on ...

National Sep 30, 2009

Suicide tally topped 22,000 through August

The number of people who committed suicide from January through August came to 22,362, an increase of 4.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the National Police Agency. If the pace continues, the annual figure could surpass the record 34,427 marked in 2003. So far ...

Fighters earn fourth straight playoff berth

Baseball / Japanese Baseball Sep 30, 2009

Fighters earn fourth straight playoff berth

Terrmel Sledge and Yoshio Itoi each homered twice as the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters routed the Orix Buffaloes 12-3 on Tuesday to clinch a playoff berth in the Pacific League Climax Series for the fourth straight year. Kenji Takahashi hit a two-run homer to open ...

Business Sep 30, 2009

Record price tumble sparks deflation fears

Prices in Japan tumbled at a record pace in August, intensifying concerns that deflation could undermine the fragile economic recovery. The key consumer price index, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, fell 2.4 percent from a year earlier amid rising unemployment and falling wages, the ...

Store managers sue 7-11 over discount sales ban

National Sep 30, 2009

Store managers sue 7-11 over discount sales ban

Managers of Seven-Eleven Japan Co.'s franchise shops sued the nation's biggest convenience store chain operator Tuesday for some ¥230 million in damages, saying they lost profits after being banned from selling food products close to their expiration dates at discount prices. The lawsuit sheds light ...