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November 07, 2025
The Independent Voice in Asia
November 07, 2025
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Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks to a panel on promoting economic security in Japan on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Takaichi calls for the updating of Japan's economic security law
By Kazuaki Nagata
The prime minister argues that the geopolitical situation has changed and economic threats are increasing.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks to a panel on promoting economic security in Japan on Friday.
People watch a TV news report on North Korea firing ballistic missiles toward the sea off its east coast, at the main railway station in Seoul on Friday.
JAPAN
North Korea fires ballistic missile into waters outside Japan’s EEZ
By Jesse Johnson
In brief remarks to reporters, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said that the missile had likely landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
A photo of Typhoon Hinnamnor, captured aboard the International Space Station as the typhoon approached islands in Okinawa Prefecture, on Aug. 31, 2022.
JAPAN / Science & Health
French study says climate change-driven storms endanger flight safety
By Tomoko Otake
Storms have become more intense, producing stronger winds and often resulting in greater in-flight turbulence, the study found.
Helle Kristoffersen, Asia president of French oil and gas conglomerate TotalEnergies, speaks at a session of the French Japanese Business Summit on Thursday in Tokyo.
BUSINESS
Japan’s energy import strategy compelling for landlocked European nations
By Elizabeth Beattie
Europe has grappled with energy security following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Made at a time when Japan was still grappling with Yukio Mishima’s legacy, Paul Schrader’s biopic “Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters” was blocked from screening in the country for decades.
CULTURE / Film
A 40-year wait for ‘Mishima’ ends at TIFF
By James Hadfield
Paul Schrader’s 1985 biopic of the radical author Yukio Mishima finds its Japanese audience at last.
Made at a time when Japan was still grappling with Yukio Mishima’s legacy, Paul Schrader’s biopic “Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters” was blocked from screening in the country for decades.

JAPAN

Shiori Ito at the National Board of Review Awards Gala in New York in January
Shiori Ito’s documentary to be finally screened in Japan next month
By Jessica Speed
The Japanese release of “Black Box Diaries” includes revisions, although it’s not clear precisely what edits have been made.
Only about half as many people in the Noto Peninsula chose to repair their homes that were damaged by last year's earthquake and heavy rain as those who decided to demolish them, sources said Thursday.
More choosing demolition over repair for Noto homes damaged by disasters
Many applied for publicly funded demolition because fixing the houses on their own would have been much costlier.
Final suspect held in case of teachers accused of sharing child sexual abuse images
Japan extends SDF deployment in Middle East
Japan and U.S. to join forces to mine rare earths near Pacific island
By Yoshiaki Nohara
Police witness says Abe shooter's homemade guns were all lethal

BUSINESS

Outlays by households gained 1.8% in September from a year earlier, led by transportation and entertainment, but the rise was lower than expected, reflecting falling spending on housing and education.
Japanese households boost spending despite inflation hit
By Yoshiaki Nohara
Outlays by households adjusted for inflation gained 1.8% in September from a year earlier, led by transportation and entertainment.
While the cost of living isn’t going up nearly as fast as it did in 2022, consumer prices are still up 27% since the onset of the pandemic.
‘Jenga tower’ U.S. economy teeters as middle class pulls back spending
By Catarina Saraiva and Jaewon Kang
The richest 10% of households are fueling nearly half of total U.S. spending, thanks to a stock market surge that has boosted wealth and propelled economic output this year.
Japan’s largest tech fund says AI stocks not at bubble stage
By Toshiro Hasegawa
Askul to resume online sales in December at earliest in wake of cyberattack
Google planning powerful AI data center on tiny Australian outpost
By Kirsty Needham
Discount chain takes aim at 7-Eleven in Japan with $2 tonkatsu
By Kanoko Matsuyama

WORLD

Visitors look at a model of the Fujian aircraft carrier displayed at the China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, in China's Guangdong province, in November 2024.
China’s new aircraft carrier begins service in boost to Beijing
By Josh Xiao
The carrier joins the People’s Liberation Army Navy as Beijing is locked in territorial disputes in regional waters such as the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.
Smoke rises following Israeli airstrikes in Tayr Debba, southern Lebanon, on Thursday.
Israel launches airstrikes on southern Lebanon, says it's targeting Hezbollah
The strikes came despite a ceasefire deal agreed a year ago that was meant to end more than a year of fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah.
Trump meets Central Asian leaders to boost critical mineral ties
Under pressure? EU states on edge over migrant burden-sharing
By Camille CAMDESSUS
In China, wedding bells are ringing in nightclubs, a subway station and on snowy mountain peaks
By Claire Fu, Tingshu Wang and Josh Arslan
Typhoon Kalmaegi brings destruction to Vietnam as Philippines death toll rises

Sports

Fukazaki (right) grapples with Enho at the IG Arena in Nagoya on July 13.
These are the hottest lower-division rikishi to watch right now
By John Gunning
There are potential superstars and immense talent to be found up and down the banzuke.
Aryna Sabalenka and Jessica Pegula reach semifinal round at WTA Finals
FIFA announces new peace prize to be awarded during World Cup draw
Yokozuna duo Onosato and Hoshoryu poised for another clash of titans
By John Gunning
McLaren boss would rather lose title than play favorites in championship race

Opinion

A news program in Taipei shows the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Busan, South Korea, on Oct. 30.
‘Stability’ in U.S.-China competition isn’t surrender
Brad Glosserman
A recent Rand report urges a stable rivalry between the U.S. and China, emphasizing managed competition and the need for mutual recognition of each other's political legitimacy.
Trump 2.0 diminishes European Union power
By Hitoshi Suzuki and Gabriele Maletta
Make COP30 about human welfare
By Bjorn Lomborg
Domestic issues dominate prime minister's strong Diet debut
Rice can feed the world — even with fewer farmers
By Javier Blas

ENVIRONMENT

Oxfam activists wearing big head masks depicting world leaders protest to criticize the inadequacy of decisions made by the world’s largest economies in combating the climate crisis, ahead of the U.N. Climate Change Conference COP30 in Belem, Brazil, on Wednesday.
30 years of climate talks: Progress, pitfalls and a planet in peril
By Valerie Volcovici and Richard Valdmanis
As leaders gather for the U.N. climate summit in Brazil this week, the data charting progress in the fight against global warming tells a sobering story.
World leaders punch back at U.S. climate denial ahead of COP30 negotiations
By Valerie Volcovici, Lisandra Paraguassu and William James
How sickly forests are felling Europe's climate ambitions
By Alison Withers, Kate Abnett and Simon Johnson
Climate-friendly mayors find hope in Trump’s election setback
By Peter Millard, Mariana Durao and Beatriz Amat
Pay to protect: Brazil pitches new forest fund at COP30
By Nick Perry

CULTURE

Made at a time when Japan was still grappling with Yukio Mishima’s legacy, Paul Schrader’s biopic “Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters” was blocked from screening in the country for decades.
A 40-year wait for ‘Mishima’ ends at TIFF
By James Hadfield
Paul Schrader’s 1985 biopic of the radical author Yukio Mishima finds its Japanese audience at last.
‘Palaver’: A queer story set in Tokyo searches for a home for the heart
By Grace En-yi Ting
‘Palestine 36’ wins top honor as TIFF wraps a 10-day celebration of cinema
By Alyssa I. Smith
Asian auteurs stole the show at this year's TIFF
By Mike Fu
‘The Obsessed’: Charming anime dances to its own tune
By Matt Schley

LIFE

Noh theater uses several types of masks, including the "onna" (woman) mask.
Learning to feel noh: The words that unlock its mystery and emotion
By Eric Margolis
Noh theater’s mystery and emotion unfold through careful understanding of the language used.
How airlines are refining their in-flight food in Japan's tourism boom
By Tan Pin Yen
A Sichuan-inspired classic gets an umami boost
By Makiko Itoh
New generations of designers carry Issey Miyake's legacy
By Phoebe Amoroso
Sun-dried and sustainable, Japan’s persimmon dye lives on
By Joanna Kawecki

COMMUNITY

Indonesian students at Hiroshima University hold posters of the 17+8 Demands, demanding transparency and action from their homeland’s government.
Young Indonesians in Japan find their political voice
By Nadila
From Hiroshima to Tokyo, Indonesian diasporic communities in Japan are expressing their support for compatriots back home and building solidarity online and offline.
Genmai the dachshund has a spring in his step
Wielding a weapon of yore at a community dojo
By Monique Bae
Florian Wiltschko: ‘Shinto helps me understand and live within Japanese culture’
By Samantha Seghers
Lovely listener Jimena just needs time and care

Editors' Picks

SUMO
These are the hottest lower-division rikishi to watch right now
By John Gunning
Fukazaki (right) grapples with Enho at the IG Arena in Nagoya on July 13.
CULTURE
Across borders and screens, Tokyo film festival finds humanity in migration
By Erik Augustin Palm
“Mother Bhumi” takes place in a multiethnic rice-farming community where Chinese, Thai and Malay lineages intertwine.
JAPAN
Takaichi’s balancing act: Supporting Taiwan and stabilizing China ties
By Gabriel Dominguez
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi shakes hands with Lin Hsin-i, Taiwan’s presidential adviser, on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit meeting in Gyeongju, South Korea, on Saturday in this image posted to Takaichi's official X account.
SPORTS
From 1973 to 2025: A Japanese American skater’s long ride to recognition
By Mai Yoshikawa
Judi Oyama at Winchester Skatepark in San Jose, California, in January 1979. The Skateboarding Hall of Fame inductee and Guinness World Record holder still skates and hopes to inspire older women.
JAPAN
More Japanese universities pushing toward teaching in English
By Jessica Speed
Waseda University in Tokyo

Podcast

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

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes
By Alex K.T. Martin

JT Directory Service

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo
Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo

COMFACTS

New Food Products Utilizing Tsunan Sake Brewery’s Sake Lees Unveiled at “TORANOMON JUST RIGHT NEW FOOD” Tasting Event
New Food Products Utilizing Tsunan Sake Brewery’s Sake Lees Unveiled at “TORANOMON JUST RIGHT NEW FOOD” Tasting Event
TSUNAN SAKE BREWERY

WHAT’S TRENDING

COMMENTARY
The Toyota buyout is a major test for Japan’s reforms
By Juliana Liu
Akio Toyoda, chairman of Toyota Motor, speaks during a media preview at the Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo on Oct. 29. Minority investors are challenging the carmaker's bid to take affiliate Toyota Industries Corp. private.
WORLD
From France to Mali, a deportee's struggle far from home
By Sofia Christensen, Juliette Jabkhiro and Layli Foroudi
Moussa Sacko, a Malian deported from France — where he had lived since he was a young child — stands on a street in Bamako, Mali, in December. Compared with his home in France, Bamako feels like a different planet, Sacko said.
BUSINESS
High-speed rail is expensive and difficult, but seen as a key to growth
By Kazuaki Nagata
Achal Khare, former managing director at India’s National High Speed Rail Corporation, gives a presentation during the IHRA Forum 2025 in Tokyo on Oct. 23.
JAPAN
ChatGPT nickname and Trump tariffs nominated for Japan’s buzzword of 2025
By Kanako Takahara
Women hold toys depicting Myaku-Myaku, the official character for the 2025 Osaka Expo, during a media day ahead of the event's public opening day in Osaka in April.
BUSINESS
SoftBank is said to have explored potential takeover of Marvell
By Ryan Gould, Min Jeong Lee, Liana Baker and Josh Sisco
SoftBank explored a potential takeover of U.S. chipmaker Marvell Technology earlier this year, in what would have been the semiconductor industry's largest-ever deal.