The Lower House Wednesday approved a record ¥97.71 trillion ($912 billion) budget for fiscal 2018, ensuring its enactment before the new fiscal year starts on April 1. About a third of the total, or ¥32.97 trillion, is earmarked for social security spending amid the graying ...

Kawasaki Heavy Industries excessively ground down a steel component, likely causing the 16-cm crack discovered in December on the undercarriage of a shinkansen, JR West says

Tokyo 2020 organizers unveiled Wednesday the official mascots for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, based on a futuristic vision of the world with the two characters decked out in traditional blue-checkered and a pink cherry-blossom-theme attire, respectively. "(These designs) embody tradition, the future, cuteness and ...

A team of researchers said Tuesday that it has created a more comprehensive map showing the universe's dark matter distribution by using a camera on Japan's Subaru Telescope in Hawaii. The map covers a wider area and features a higher resolution than any other similar ...

With stealth jets entering service, leaked pictures of new high-tech naval artillery and proud reports of maneuvers that "dare to shine the sword," China's armed forces are putting on a show of power as they lobby for greater defense spending. Although it is the world's ...

The nation's industrial production in January fell by a bigger-than-expected 6.6 percent from the previous month on weakness among carmakers, prompting the government to lower its basic assessment for the first time in over two years, industry ministry data showed Wednesday. The seasonally adjusted index ...

The Australian government issued a compulsory recall Wednesday of more than 2 million vehicles fitted with defective air bags made by Japanese auto parts maker Takata Corp., following an investigation by the country's consumer watchdog. At least 23 deaths and over 230 serious injuries have ...

When Microsoft revealed a replacement to Windows 8, it skipped the number 9 and went straight to Windows 10. Apple's iPhone 8 was followed by the iPhone X (pronounced "ten"). But Samsung refused to follow: The successor to its Galaxy S8 is the Galaxy ...

Japan and the international community should pressure China to find a peaceful solution to its long-standing conflict with Tibet, the president of the Tibetan government-in-exile told The Japan Times in a recent interview in Tokyo. "It's either China transforms you, or the world transforms China," ...

A majority of university students in Japan do not read books for pleasure, an annual survey by the National Federation of University Co-operative Associations showed Tuesday. In the 2017 survey, 53.1 percent of the students said they do not read books, including electronic, at all, ...

The Philippines will allow an investigation into alleged human rights abuses in its bloody war on drugs, but not if it is conducted by the United Nations' current special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings, a senior official has said. More than 30 mostly Western countries have ...

Entertaining clients has always been part of the world of finance. But it's no longer just about wining and dining. In an era of healthier lifestyles and tighter industry budgets, the boundaries of where to go and what to do have shifted. The legend ...

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his late father, Kim Jong Il, used fraudulently obtained Brazilian passports to apply for visas to visit Western countries in the 1990s, five senior Western European security sources told Reuters. While North Korea's ruling family is known to ...

U.S. intelligence had evidence that voter registration systems or websites in seven states — Alaska, Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Texas and Wisconsin — were compromised by Russian-backed operatives before the 2016 election but never told the states, NBC News reported on Tuesday. The Department of ...

The period of term-limited presidents corresponded with unprecedented growth. Now Xi Jinping is changing the rules

Japan's currency is finally close to fair value, offering perhaps the healthiest configuration for businesses and investors in decades

Japan-based German architect warns that Tokyo risks squandering a historic chance to offer an ambitious, sustainable vision in 2020.

Kazuo Hara became famous — some would say notorious — for the documentaries he made about individuals who defied Japanese social norms and laws. One such individual was Kenzo Okuzaki, the subject of Hara's 1987 film "The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On." A veteran of ...

Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos has been responsible for some of the most provocative and peculiar films of the past decade. His Oscar-nominated movie "Dogtooth" (2009) depicted a married couple who had kept their grown-up children confined at home for their entire lives. "The Lobster" ...

Visitors to Japan are often surprised by the visual and aural clutter they encounter in what they might know as the land of Zen. Instead of minimalist rock gardens, Japanese cities assault the senses with bright lights, ads and loudspeaker noise. This overload extends ...

Gonzaga University forward Rui Hachimura was named to the All-West Coast Conference First Team for the first time on Tuesday. The Japan-born player was one of 10 players on the conference's men's all-star team, along with Gonzaga teammates Johnathan Williams (senior forward) and Josh Perkins ...

That stretch in the evenings and the plum blossoms in bloom means just one thing to sumo fans — it's time for the Osaka Basho. With a historical propensity for surprising outcomes, the meet has acquired the nickname 'Areru Haru Basho' or 'Turbulent Spring Tournament.' It's ...