By 2050 the central government aims to have all new cars sold in Japan be electric or hybrid vehicles, an economy ministry panel said Tuesday, amid intensifying competition in the global shift to green cars. The panel, which included chiefs of major automakers such as ...

Yamato Holdings Co. said Tuesday it has overcharged corporate moving service clients by ¥1.7 billion over the 24 months through June. During the period the group handled 124,000 moves. Inappropriate charges were found for nearly 40 percent of the total, or about 48,000 cases, according ...

A former senior education ministry official was indicted Tuesday on suspicion he accepted a favor from a private university last year in return for helping it secure a government subsidy. Futoshi Sano, 59, former director-general of the ministry's science and technology bureau, is accused of ...

Kishida said he made the decision because he believes it is better for Abe to handle a number of ongoing issues facing Japan.

Foreign residents braved scorching temperatures and joined hundreds of volunteers in Hiroshima Prefecture over the weekend to help deal with the aftermath of the recent rain disaster, an effort they said was meant to show gratitude for the hospitality they have received living in ...

Official climate forecasts and experts are warning that the recent rise in temperatures is likely to become the new normal in the years ahead.

The prime minister told his Cabinet to speed up preparations for a plan that will effectively open the door to blue-collar laborers.

A major challenge facing the city as it prepares to host the games is the possibility of a heat wave hitting while it welcomes the world.

A ruling Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker has drawn a fierce backlash after labeling the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community "unproductive" in terms of childbirth, and warning that a society that accepts same-sex relationships risks "increasing unhappy people." Junior lawmaker Mio Sugita is facing ...

Honda Motor Co. and Yamaha Motor Co., the world's two major motorcycle makers, are betting on hybrid scooters in Thailand as the vehicles continue to receive growing global attention. Honda says it will launch the PCX Hybrid in August while Yamaha released the Yamaha Grand ...

A wildfire killed at least 50 people and injured more than 150 as it swept through a small resort town near Athens, with huge flames trapping families with children as they fled. The fire which hit Mati, 29 km (18 miles) east of the capital, ...

When strapped for cash before his next paycheck, Ryo Takezawa would trudge over to the nearest Bookoff, the nation's largest chain of secondhand bookstores, to sell his novels and CDs. But the buyback rates were meager: The 37-year-old temporary worker was lucky if he was ...

Work by North Korea to dismantle a key testing facility for its missile engines and rocket launches could pave the way toward more intensive talks on a peace regime between Pyongyang and Washington, experts said after a new analysis of satellite imagery showed disassembly ...

Russia's state-owned oil giant Rosneft has filed a lawsuit against Japanese and other stakeholders in the Sakhalin-1 offshore oil and gas project, demanding some 89 billion rubles ($1.4 billion) for alleged "unfounded" gains, the Tass news agency said Monday. The claim was filed against five ...

The central government is taking emergency steps to boost the number of child welfare workers by 60 percent within five years, spurred by the death of a child whose handwritten notes seeking forgiveness from her abusive parents have shaken Japan. The death in March of ...

Amid increased efforts to help non-Japanese talent launch businesses in Japan to boost foreign investment and international competitiveness, the domestic startup scene saw a contest for entrepreneurs with an overseas background last week. Hosted by Tokyo Star Bank Ltd., seven finalists from 48 contenders for ...

Nippon Life Insurance Co. will no longer extend loans for, or invest in, coal-fired power plants due to environmental concerns, an official at Japan's biggest life insurer said, in the first such move by a major domestic institutional investor. Japanese banks in recent months have ...

India's first training center for teachers of Japanese was officially opened Monday in the capital, New Delhi. The inauguration ceremony for the center, which is a joint project involving the Indian Ministry of External Affairs and the Japanese Embassy with the support of the Japan ...

The Defense Ministry has newly estimated that two land-based missile batteries the nation aims to deploy could cost around ¥400 billion ($3.6 billion), double the initial quotation, according to a government source. If the prices of interceptor missiles and other expenses are included, the total ...

A deadly heat wave across Asia is stretching electricity grids from southern China to Tokyo and Seoul, sending prices to multiyear highs and sparking warnings of more power stress to come. Japan on Monday breached records above 41 degrees as the heat blamed for dozens ...

When a company asks suppliers to retroactively give money back, it's a sign that something has gone wrong. That's what analysts worry about with Tesla Inc., which has asked suppliers to return a portion of payments for parts they've delivered going back to 2016. In ...

Yemen is close to famine after a 25-percent increase in levels of severe hunger this year and an offensive on the main port city of Hodeida, a lifeline for millions, humanitarian organizations warned on Monday. Thousands more people have been displaced by the conflict and ...

The Free and Open Indo-Pacific strategy presents Japan an opportunity to play a leadership role in the region.

Many are wondering if China will respond to Trump's trade war by threatening a currency war. If it does, the world should call its bluff.

Yuyushi Furuta was on a path to commercial success with her calligraphy when she decided to take a left turn.

Fertile periods of artistic endeavor are not hard to come by in Japanese history. Many would cite the Edo, Muromachi or Heian periods. The Tokyo National Museum, however, reminds visitors of one era often forgotten — the ancient Jomon Period.

Soufu Honda uses her entire body to create her calligraphy works in a process that verges on the theatrical.

July 31-Oct. 8 After moving to Paris in 1913, Japanese-French painter Leonard Tsuguharu Foujita (1886-1968) became a member of the School of Paris (Ecole de Paris), a community of influential French and emigre artists famous for nurturing new art movements. Despite having no previous connections ...

Masako Sakata, an award-winning Japanese documentary film director, took the long route to answer a gnawing question: How is it that Japan is still wedded to atomic power while Germany decided to phase out its nuclear plants by 2022 in the wake of the ...

Japan set a lofty goal of capturing the gold medal in the men's 4x100-meter relay at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. As has been repeatedly said, raising individual skills is the biggest key to achieving that feat. And working diligently in Japan and overseas is a ...

"Life is like a can of Coca-Cola. It's dark, it's bubbling, it's sweet ... but in the end, it's short." The words of Denis Ten, posted in a Twitter video, became eerily prophetic after his shocking death last Thursday at the age of 25. The Sochi ...

Galatasaray defender Yuto Nagatomo said Tuesday he is eager to represent Japan at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games if he is picked as an overage player for the men's under-23 squad. Speaking at an event in Tokyo, the 31-year-old Nagatomo said he is ready to ...