The row between Idemitsu Kosan Co. and its founding family has escalated with the oil distributor saying it will issue new shares through a public offering that will weaken the family's control and allow it to pursue a stalled merger with Showa Shell Sekiyu ...

Japan and the United States have postponed security talks involving their foreign and defense chiefs planned for mid-July because U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will not be available around that time, according to a Japanese source. The postponement of the "two-plus-two" talks comes as ...

KYODO The government pension fund said it has begun investing about ¥1 trillion in domestic stocks in line with three equity indexes covering firms that meet certain environmental, social and corporate governance criteria. Through the move, the Government Pension Investment Fund aims to prompt Japanese companies ...

Yoshiro Mori, president of the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee, is asking the new Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly to cooperate in tackling issues related to hosting the games. "As one who was involved in politics, I had anticipated this (election) outcome, but I never imagined it to ...

It wasn't so long ago that Shinzo Abe appeared on course to becoming Japan's longest-serving prime minister ever. But after his conservative Liberal Democratic Party's crushing defeat in Sunday's Tokyo assembly election, Abe's iron grip on power has finally shown signs of slipping — a ...

Beijing issued a scathing rebuke Monday of a U.S. warship's patrol a day earlier near a contested island occupied by Chinese troops in the South China Sea — the latest irritant in the two powers' increasingly fraught relationship. The patrol, the second known "freedom of ...

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Taro Aso violated the ministers' guidelines recommending against the purchase or sale of golf club memberships while in office, a parliamentary report showed Monday. An official at Aso's office said the deputy prime minister "should have refrained from" buying ...

A day after leading Tomin First no Kai (Tokyoites First) to a landslide victory in the metropolitan assembly election, Gov. Yuriko Koike reaffirmed her commitment to reform but said she would resign as leader of the upstart party to focus on the job at ...

A record 36 women won seats Sunday in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly.

North Korea has a last chance to engage in dialogue with the outside world, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Monday during a meeting with former U.S. leader Barack Obama, Moon's office said. Obama is visiting Seoul this week to speak at a forum hosted ...

The powerful frequencies of pager devices are attracting attention as an improved means of disseminating emergency information to the public when disasters occur. Since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that hit the Tohoku region, a growing number of municipalities have been making use of ...

The government is considering plans to create a holiday called "Kids Week," in an ongoing effort to change the country's workaholic culture and allow more time for families. The hope is that the proposed holiday will boost private consumption and encourage workers to use their ...

A website created by a Nagoya-based venture firm offering help from Japanese living overseas is gaining popularity with travelers. Traveloco has over 10,000 Japanese living in 140 countries registered on its site, offering services that meet a range needs of Japanese travelers — from taking ...

Sota Fujii, 14, whose quest to claim the all-time record for consecutive wins in shogi generated nationwide suspense over the past few weeks, saw his record win streak snapped Sunday at 29 matches. The shogi prodigy, who is ranked fourth dan, fell to 22-year-old fifth ...

Land prices in Japan rose 0.4 percent on average as of Jan. 1 from a year earlier, marking the second consecutive year of gain, the National Tax Agency said in its annual report released Monday. The highest land price in the country was ¥40.32 million ...

Salarymen have taken a pummeling in recent years — with pay stagnating and rising numbers of working women and mothers eroding their once-dominant position as the family's breadwinner. Those changes have affected how they are seen at home, with children respecting their mothers more than ...

The leaders of Japan and the United States agreed in telephone talks Monday on the need to heap more pressure on nuclear-armed North Korea as it heads down what the White House termed a "dangerous path." The talks between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. ...

The recipient is in stable condition and should be discharged from the hospital in about three months.

The U.S. administration has told India that Westinghouse Electric Co. will emerge from bankruptcy and be sold by the year end, industry and diplomatic sources have said, raising the prospect of a Washington-supported sale or bailout for the nuclear firm. India, like other nuclear nations, ...

The Pentagon sent a warship near a disputed island in the South China Sea occupied by China on Sunday, U.S. defense officials told The Japan Times, following a series of moves that appeared to highlight the White House's growing frustration with Beijing. The patrol, the ...

President Bashar Assad has appeared on the Syrian currency for the first time, his portrait printed on a new 2,000-pound banknote that went into circulation on Sunday. Central bank governor, Duraid Durgham, said the 2,000-pound note was one of several new notes printed years ago ...

The United States on Sunday lifted a ban on laptops in cabins on flights from Abu Dhabi to the United States, saying the United Arab Emirates' Etihad Airways had put in place required tighter security measures. Etihad Airways welcomed the decision, and credited a preclearance ...

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe should take the hint delivered by the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election, roll up his sleeves and reclaim the mantle of economic progress.

You've found the right job, sent off your 履歴書 (rirekisho, resume) and now it's time for the 面接 (mensetsu, interview).

The youngest professional shogi fourth-dan player, Sota Fujii, 14, set the all-time record for most consecutive wins — 29 official matches.

A June 8 article in the Asahi Shimbun reported that Japan already has 39,000 working veterinarians.

Takeya Nakamura hit his 16th and 17th home runs of the season to bring the Seibu Lions from behind in an 11-4 win over the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters on Monday. With one out in the third inning and the Lions trailing 2-1 at Tokyo ...

Fresh from claiming his first career ATP title at the Antalya Open in southern Turkey, Yuichi Sugita arrived in London on Sunday and said he could not hope to start Wimbledon on a better note. Sugita moved up from 66th to a career-best 44th in ...

Japan fullback Ayumu Goromaru said Monday he knew Yamaha would be his home if and when he decided to shift his playing base back to Japan, and he has made that a reality. "I felt I wanted to play for Yamaha Motors again if I ...