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October 12, 2025
The Independent Voice in Asia
October 12, 2025
Sanae Takaichi
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U.S. President Donald Trump addresses hundreds of American generals and admirals summoned to the Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia, on Sept. 30.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Trump’s dealmaking diplomacy grows fragile as China fires back
The sudden, and unexpected, back-and-forth between the world’s two largest economies came just weeks ahead of a consequential meeting between the U.S. and Chinese leaders.

More coverage

Trump ratchets up U.S.-China trade war with new levies and export controls
The world’s chip supply chain is bracing for fallout from China’s rare-earth curbs
U.S. President Donald Trump addresses hundreds of American generals and admirals summoned to the Marine Corps base in Quantico, Virginia, on Sept. 30.
People walk amid the destruction in Gaza City, in the northern Gaza Strip, on Saturday, a day after an Israel-Hamas ceasefire took effect.
WORLD
Gazans stream back home as Israel-Hamas ceasefire holds
Thousands of Palestinians streamed north along the coast of Gaza on Saturday, trekking by foot, car, and cart back to their abandoned homes as a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas appeared to be holding.
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda speaks to reporters at the Diet in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
After ruling bloc breakup, CDP and Komeito eye unified PM candidate
The move comes as the Democratic Party for the People appears no longer willing to hold coalition talks with the LDP, putting new ruling party chief Sanae Takaichi in a tough spot.
North Korea's new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile is displayed during a military parade to celebrate the 80th founding anniversary of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang in this image released Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC
North Korea unveils new long-range missile during military parade
By Jesse Johnson
The North has called its Hwasong-20 ICBM "the most powerful nuclear strategic weapon" — though the missile is still under development.
At Cofunia, an inn themed after Japan's "kofun," the often keyhole-shaped burial mounds form the inspiration for design of much of the property.
LIFE / Travel
Nara inn offers room, board and an ancient burial mound
By Kimberly Hughes
More than 160,000 "kofun" burial mounds dot the Japanese archipelago, but Cofunia allows guests to lay their heads directly adjacent to one.
At Cofunia, an inn themed after Japan's "kofun," the often keyhole-shaped burial mounds form the inspiration for design of much of the property.

JAPAN

On a per capita basis, the expenses paid to medical institutions for the treatment of illness and injury in the year through March 2024 expanded 3.5% to ¥386,700, also an all-time high, according to a final report released Friday.
Medical expenses in Japan hit record ¥48 trillion in fiscal 2023
The rise in medical costs is attributed to an increase in influenza cases, an aging population and costly medical treatments using advanced technologies.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba delivers remarks at a memorial service for Self-Defense Forces personnel who died in the line of duty, on Saturday at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo.
Ishiba attends memorial for fallen SDF members
The prime minister pledged to "do everything we can to protect the lives and the peace of the people of Japan."
Japan and U.S. leaders may tour U.S. aircraft carrier
Why Japan's coalition collapsed — and what's next
LDP-Komeito coalition marked by twists and turns over 26 years
Japan's 2025 rice harvest seen rising to 7.48 million tons

BUSINESS

A worker waters the site of a rare earth metals mine in Nancheng county, in China's Jiangxi province, in January 2011.
The world’s chip supply chain is bracing for fallout from China’s rare-earth curbs
By Dasha Afanasieva, Debby Wu and Maggie Eastland
The restrictions represent the first major attempt by Beijing to exercise long-arm jurisdiction over foreign companies to target the semiconductor industry.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks during the Federal Reserve Board Community Bank Conference in Washington on Thursday.
Bessent’s big gamble on Argentina has a narrow road to pay off
For the Treasury secretary's $20 billion bet to pay off, a lot of things have to go right — things that in the past, in Argentina, have tended to go wrong.
Bessent’s big gamble on Argentina has a narrow road to pay off
Ford F-150 might be imported by the Japanese government: report
By Francis Tang
Japan’s political shakeup opens door for real estate activism
By Kentaro Tsutsumi
Japan’s top bank CEOs push for AI, soothing worry over human work
By Taiga Uranaka and Takashi Nakamichi

WORLD

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on Oct. 5.
Trusting Trump: Why Hamas gambled on giving up Gaza hostages
The U.S. president's handling of Israel's Qatar attack on Hamas officials gave the group more faith that he was serious about ending the war in Gaza.
Venezuelan opposition leader, Maria Corina Machado greets supporters during a rally in Guanare, Venezuela, in July 2024.
Nobel winner vilified by Maduro regime vows to keep up her fight in Venezuela
Supporters of Maria Corina Machado have thinned under Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's brutal crackdown that's sent many to jail or into exile.
Major win for Trump on Gaza, but will it stand test of time?
By Leon Bruneau
China issues bounty for Taiwan PsyOps unit for 'separatism'
Trump, 79, has 'cardiac age' of 65-year-old, doctor says
Nobel winner vilified by Maduro regime vows to keep up her fight in Venezuela

Sports

Dodgers relief pitcher Roki Sasaki throws during the eighth inning of Game 4 of the National League Division Series on Thursday in Los Angeles.
From tears to triumph: Roki Sasaki powering Dodgers toward World Series
By Rob Woollard
The 23-year-old Japanese pitcher produced a performance for the ages on Thursday as the Los Angels Dodgers eliminated the Philadelphia Phillies.
Yoshitomo Tsutsugo produces vintage performance in Climax Series opener
By Jason Coskrey
Mariners outlast Tigers in 15 innings to advance in MLB playoffs
BayStars take down Giants in Game 1 of Central League Climax Series
By Jason Coskrey
A'ja Wilson pours in 31 as Aces complete WNBA Finals sweep of Mercury

Opinion

Then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and then-Liberal Democratic Party policy chief Sanae Takaichi mark a win by a party candidate in the July 2013 Upper House election. There is ongoing debate over whether Takaichi's economic approach will mirror the former prime minister's Abenomics.
The 'Takaichi trade' isn’t Abenomics 2.0, and that’s OK
Gearoid Reidy
Party leader Takaichi has been left with one of the poorest positions imaginable. The LDP is a minority in both houses of parliament.
A deal that might heal — or haunt — the Middle East
By Imran Khalid
Pragmatism, not ideology, must guide Takaichi
How Asia can reduce its dollar dependence
By Yasuto Watanabe and Hiro Ito
Global lessons from a press in peril
By Martin Baron

ENVIRONMENT

A worker feeds shrimp in Pandeglang, Banten province, Indonesia, on July 29.
Indonesia says no to scrap metal after shrimp radiation scare
By Chandra Asmara
Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq said the pause aims to ensure that the local steel-recycling industry meets radiation safety standards.
Trump calls climate change a con; science braces for more
By David Sherfinski
Global renewable power output overtakes coal for the first time, report says
Swiss glaciers hit by light snowfall and heat wave, scientists say
By Cecile Mantovani and Denis Balibouse
Wildlife advocate and primate expert Jane Goodall dies at 91
By Susan Heavey

CULTURE

In "Weathering," 10 performers create a sculpture composed of bodies, sounds, scents, liquids and objects.
Autumn Meteorite stages a month of inventive theater in Tokyo
By Jessica Kozuka
The inaugural performing arts festival brings a variety of shows, from monodramas to 20-people, multivenue ensemble productions.
Iyo Sky takes flight: How the ‘Genius of the Sky’ turned risk into art and fear into fun
By Adam Davidson
Hungarian 'master of the apocalypse' Laszlo Krasznahorkai wins Nobel Prize in literature
‘Hokusai’s Daughter’ captures the ferocity of a forgotten painter
By James Hadfield
‘Flame Union’: Hitman returns with fighting finesse and comic firepower
By Mark Schilling

LIFE

This year’s World's 50 Best Bars list features bars from 29 cities worldwide, including debuts from Eastern Europe.
Tokyo earns three spots on World’s 50 Best Bars list
By Weiwen Lin
Bar Benfiddich climbs ranks, but Hong Kong steals the show with Bar Leone making history as the first bar in Asia to be named No. 1 in the listing.
From straight to curly: Getting your hair done in Japanese
By Mishu Callan
Roasted green tea gets a milky makeover
By Simon Daly
Eat your balloons: The culinary theater of Grant Achatz comes to Tokyo
By Weiwen Lin
How a family-run landscaper turned the Osaka Expo green
By Edward Hewes

COMMUNITY

Shrunali Ranade moved to Japan in 2015 and has carved a niche for herself as both an engineer and a cricket player.
Shrunali Ranade: ‘Stepping back isn’t failure but another form of strength’
By Megha Wadhwa
As an engineer and member of the women’s national cricket team in Japan, Shrunali Ranade has carved out her own niche over the past 10 years.
Student groups nurture Japan-South Korea dialogue and cultural ties
By Moe Shimizu
Linda Joyce: ‘We hope people recognize the benefits of exploring rural areas’
By Louise George Kittaka
Stirred, not shaken: Kyoto business platform blends local and global
By Samantha Seghers
Tax-advantaged investments no lost cause for U.S. residents of Japan
By Gendel Gento

Editors' Picks

LIFE
Ghost of Yotei’s bloodstained fun sidesteps Ainu identity
By Owen Ziegler
Ghost of Yotei, the follow-up to 2020's smash hit Ghost of Tsushima, is a violent, vengeful and engaging romp through 17th-century Hokkaido that fails to stick the landing on its most sensitive cultural material.
BUSINESS
‘Takaichi trade’ starts unwinding as political calculus upended by Komeito exit
By Kazuaki Nagata
Less than a week ago, Sanae Takaichi seemed set to become Japan's first female prime minister.
JAPAN
‘Save the Ring’ calls intensify as Osaka Expo’s end nears
By Tomoko Otake
Visitors lounge on the grassy hill on the top of the Grand Ring during the 2025 Osaka Expo in the city of Osaka in May.
CULTURE
A Japanese comedian walks into an Aussie bar … and stays there
By Zoria Petkoska
Takashi “Waka” Wakasugi stopped by the Tokyo Comedy Bar in Shibuya Ward last month following his stint at Edinburgh Festival Fringe performing his show “Comedy Samurai.”
JAPAN
Chemistry Nobel winner Kitagawa says downtime helped him think up new material
By Tomoko Otake
Susumu Kitagawa speaks to reporters at Kyoto University on Wednesday after receiving the news that he had been awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry the same day.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?
By Alex K.T. Martin

JT Directory Service

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Maruhachi never sleeps in quest for better futons
Maruhachi never sleeps in quest for better futons

COMFACTS

Tsunan Sake Brewery Participates in ASEAN Green Transformation (GX) Sustainability Forum 2025
Tsunan Sake Brewery Participates in ASEAN Green Transformation (GX) Sustainability Forum 2025
TSUNAN SAKE BREWERY

WHAT’S TRENDING

JAPAN
University of Tokyo lands its highest spot ever in global higher education ranking
By Elizabeth Beattie
The University of Tokyo in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward
JAPAN
‘Save the Ring’ calls intensify as Osaka Expo’s end nears
By Tomoko Otake
Visitors lounge on the grassy hill on the top of the Grand Ring during the 2025 Osaka Expo in the city of Osaka in May.
JAPAN
Takaichi's PM bid faces further headwinds with coalition split
By Kanako Takahara, Himari Semans and Gabriele Ninivaggi
LDP leader Sanae Takaichi and Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito attend a party leaders' meeting on Friday in Tokyo.
JAPAN
After ruling bloc breakup, CDP and Komeito eye unified PM candidate
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda speaks to reporters at the Diet in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN
Tokyo named world’s best big city for second straight year
By Jessica Speed
Tokyo was ranked the world's best large city for the second year in a row in the Conde Nast Traveler's 2025 Readers' Choice Awards.