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July 31, 2025
The Independent Voice in Asia
July 31, 2025
Shigeru Ishiba
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A container ship approaches the Busan Port Terminal in Busan, South Korea, on July 23. Seoul's trade agreement with the U.S. brings one of the world’s biggest exporters into Washington’s emerging trade framework just a day before the deadline.
BUSINESS / Markets
U.S. sets South Korea tariff rate at 15% with energy and shipbuilding investment
By Heesu Lee, Soo-hyang Choi and Jennifer A Dlouhy
The agreement brings one of the world’s biggest exporters into Washington’s emerging trade framework just a day before the deadline.
A container ship approaches the Busan Port Terminal in Busan, South Korea, on July 23. Seoul's trade agreement with the U.S. brings one of the world’s biggest exporters into Washington’s emerging trade framework just a day before the deadline.
A person records images of waves following a tsunami advisory generated by local authorities after an earthquake struck off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula, prompting warnings and evacuations stretching across at the South Pacific, in Vina del Mar, Chile, on Wednesday.
ENVIRONMENT / Earth science / EXPLAINER
Why did such a powerful earthquake produce such a weak tsunami?
By Katrina Miller
Part of the reason the waves were weaker than anticipated may have to do with the size of the quake off the coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks about recognizing Palestinian statehood at a news conference in Ottawa on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Canada plans to recognize Palestinian state, raising allies' pressure on Israel
By Maayan Lubell, Nidal al-Mughrabi and David Ljunggren
"Canada condemns the fact that the Israeli government has allowed a catastrophe to unfold in Gaza," said Prime Minister Mark Carney.
U.S., Japanese and Australian staff work in the JJOC Cooperation Team office at the U.S. Army’s Hardy Barracks in central Tokyo in this image posted to the Australian Embassy's X account on July 25.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Coordination office marks first step in U.S. Forces Japan’s shift to ‘warfighting’ command
By Gabriel Dominguez
The launch of the new joint command team is the fruit of a multiyear effort to reshape and streamline U.S.-Japan operations.
“Memory of Lines” is Chiharu Shiota’s second art installation on Teshima as part of the Setouchi Triennale.
CULTURE / Art
Artist Chiharu Shiota weaves a hidden marvel on Teshima
By Thu-Huong Ha
The artist cherished for her red-thread installations creates a new work in one of Japan’s famed art islands.
“Memory of Lines” is Chiharu Shiota’s second art installation on Teshima as part of the Setouchi Triennale.

JAPAN

The total number of gas stations across Japan as of the end of fiscal 2024 fell for the 30th consecutive year, according to the industry ministry.
Number of gas stations in Japan fell for the 30th consecutive year, data shows
The total is now less than half of its peak, marked at the end of fiscal 1994, due to vehicle electrification and improved fuel efficiency.
Japan's oldest person, Miyoko Hiroyasu, died Tuesday at the age of 114, according to the health ministry.
Japan's oldest person dies at 114
Miyoko Hiroyasu, from the city of Nakatsu in Oita Prefecture, was born in January 1911. She died on Tuesday.
Over 90 MSDF members punished over scandal involving shipbuilders
Japan prefectural chiefs seek to promote multicultural society
Japanese AI developer Alt goes bust after accounting fraud
Japan's foreign population could top 10% in 2040, says justice minister

BUSINESS

The price increases in August will be especially noticeable for dairy products, including milk and yogurt, according to the research firm Teikoku Databank.
1,010 food and beverage prices to rise in Japan in August
The price increases in August will be especially noticeable for dairy products, including milk and yogurt.
The Japan Securities Dealers Association and Japan Exchange Group are discussing ways to prevent a banned trade known as spoofing, after Nomura Holdings joined a list of brokerages fined for manipulating the instruments.
Japan considers tighter oversight to avoid bond market ‘spoofing’
By Takashi Nakamichi
Spoofing involves placing fake orders to give market participants a false impression about supply and demand to make profitable trades.
BOJ keeps rates unchanged and lifts price view after U.S. trade deal
By Toru Fujioka
Japan's forex special account logs record-high surplus
Factory output gain in Japan shows firms’ resilience amid tariffs
By Yoshiaki Nohara
Trump hits India with 25% tariff and 'penalty' over Russia ties
By Daniel Stublen

WORLD

A nurse examines a malnourished child at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, on July 25.
On Gaza malnutrition ward, a child’s arm is as wide as mother’s thumb
By Dawoud Abu Alkas and Hatem Khaled
Gaza's food stocks have been running out since Israel, at war with Hamas since October 2023, cut off all supplies to the territory in March.
The NISAR satellite is encapsulated in its payload fairing at the Indian Space Research Organization’s Satish Dhawan Space Center on July 18.
When Earth’s surface shifts, a new satellite will see it
By Kenneth Chang
The satellite is a joint mission between NASA and India’s space agency and will track tiny shifts across almost all of Earth’s land and ice regions.
Israeli rights groups break taboo with accusations of genocide
By Charlotte Greenfield
Thailand and Cambodia trade allegations of truce breaking
By Montira Rungjirajittranon
Tsunami danger has Chile to U.S. on alert after Russia quake
Powerful quake off Russia sparks Pacific tsunami

Sports

Kotoshoho celebrates winning his first Grand Sumo Tournament at IG Arena in Nagoya on Sunday.
Kotoshoho's shock first Emperor's Cup could reinvigorate his career
By John Gunning
Kotoshoho's first Grand Sumo Tournament win in Nagoya on Sunday was perhaps even more surprising than early leader Ichiyamamoto’s would have been.
German Olympic champion Laura Dahlmeier dies after mountaineering accident
World Aquatics to review rules as 12-year-old makes waves at world championships
Former NBA star Gilbert Arenas arrested in connection with illegal poker games
Leon Marchand shatters 200-meter individual medley world record

Opinion

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba addresses a news conference in Tokyo on Monday. He repeated his pledge to stay on to prevent a political vacuum from forming after his party's poor performance in the Upper House election.
The LDP struggles to define its future after election flub
Brad Glosserman
The public doesn’t know what it wants — other than “not this” — so indecision by the LDP and other parties is understandable.
As China advances and the U.S. retreats, Japan-India ties grow stronger
By Manoj Joshi
China’s AI strategy relies on frenzy and frenemies
By Catherine Thorbecke
ASEAN+3 in an age of global uncertainty
By Yasuto Watanabe
A fringe party or political force: Will the real Sanseito stand up?
By Edo Naito

ENVIRONMENT

People ride in a boat past a newly built concrete barrier in the Mediterranean city of Alexandria, Egypt, on April 20.
Rising seas and shifting sands attack ancient Alexandria from below
By Heba Fouad and Ahmed Fahmy
The warming waters of the Mediterranean are rising due to climate change, leading to coastal erosion and undermining buildings from below.
In the Philippines, informal e-waste dismantling poses health risks
By Pam Castro
New Zealand farmers battle pine forests to 'save our sheep'
By Ben Strang
Amid fossil fuel shift in U.S., hope emerges for India and Japan tie-up on solar
By Nithin Coca
Germans are finally embracing air conditioning, even renters
By Nick Heubeck and Carolynn Look

CULTURE

“Memory of Lines” is Chiharu Shiota’s second art installation on Teshima as part of the Setouchi Triennale.
Artist Chiharu Shiota weaves a hidden marvel on Teshima
By Thu-Huong Ha
The artist cherished for her red-thread installations creates a new work in one of Japan’s famed art islands.
'Army on the Tree': World War II film leans into absurdist theater
By James Hadfield
How Japan made techno its own
By Arjan Rietveld
‘Demon Slayer’ movie slashes its own box office records
By Matt Schley
Hitsujibungaku’s pop-fueled rise to stardom
By Patrick St. Michel

LIFE

Mika Horii (left) and Jane Su record an episode of “Over the Sun” at TBS Broadcasting Center in Tokyo’s Akasaka area. The show draws 1.5 million monthly plays.
'Over the Sun': A podcast for Japanese women who’ve lived a little
By Yuko Tamura
In their hit podcast “Over the Sun,” hosts Jane Su and Mika Horii turn everyday chats into a cultural phenomenon.
A language built on the wind, from mountain gusts to wind chimes
By Eric Margolis
Communal knead: A Turkish baker in Kamakura draws queues
By Alex Michael Dwyer
As summer soars, the tomato offers a lesson in staying bright and cool
By Makiko Itoh
Traditional Japanese swordsmanship — with modern matches
By Johan Brooks

COMMUNITY

Wakana, a Japanese fan of Thai BL, visits a temple in Thon Buri, Bangkok featured in the Thai adaptation of the Japanese series “Cherry Magic.” Her media consumption kindled an interest in Thai culture and language, and ultimately led her to relocate to Thailand. “I fell in love with the whole country,” she says.
Boys’ love dramas from Thailand make waves in Japan
By Agnese Dionisio
Thailand has become a top producer of BL (boys’ love) dramas — and audiences in Japan are among the most ardent consumers.
Charming Chikuwa has a zest for life
A big, beautiful Bengal cat named Pupu
Ayaka Ohira: ‘Being outside of the traditional path gave me more freedom’
By Zoria Petkoska
The mothers holding up Japan's Vietnamese community
By Nguyen Bao Anh

Editors' Picks

JAPAN
How the Japanese TV industry is changing
By Yukana Inoue
Fuji TV headquarters in Tokyo's Minato Ward. Fuji TV came under fire over the manner in which it handled a case of “sexual trouble” involving former boy band member Masahiro Nakai and a female announcer.
JAPAN
Last soldiers of Imperial Japanese Army have a warning for younger generations
By Martin Fackler
Kunshiro Kiyozumi, 97, who was the youngest crew member of the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-58 in World War II, on his way to a restaurant to have lunch in Matsuyama, Japan, on April 29.
JAPAN
Why Ishiba refuses to quit even amid intense pressure for him to go
By Eric Johnston
Supporters of Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba take part in a rally across the street from the Prime Minister's Office on Friday.
BASEBALL
Behind the scenes at the Baseball Hall of Fame's new Yakyu/Baseball exhibit
By Joshua Mellin
“Yakyu / Baseball: The Transpacific Exchange of the Game” is set to remain on display in Cooperstown for at least five to 10 years — and possibly indefinitely.
COMMUNITY
Boys’ love dramas from Thailand make waves in Japan
By Agnese Dionisio
Wakana, a Japanese fan of Thai BL, visits a temple in Thon Buri, Bangkok featured in the Thai adaptation of the Japanese series “Cherry Magic.” Her media consumption kindled an interest in Thai culture and language, and ultimately led her to relocate to Thailand. “I fell in love with the whole country,” she says.

Podcast

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

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear
By Jason Coskrey

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SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after
Smile! It’s ‘Sanrio Time,’ now and ever after

COMFACTS

Tsunan Sake Brewery Develops “Yukigesho Castella” as Part of Sake Upcycling Project
Tsunan Sake Brewery Develops “Yukigesho Castella” as Part of Sake Upcycling Project
TSUNAN SAKE BREWERY

WHAT’S TRENDING

JAPAN
Japan on edge but prepared for tsunami after huge Kamchatka earthquake
By Tomoko Otake, Gabriele Ninivaggi, Francis Tang and Alex K.T. Martin
Police officers ask a man to evacuate from an empty beach following a tsunami warning, in Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Japan to start new residency system for foreign workers
Students hoping to work in Japan attend a Japanese class at a job placement company in Hanoi in October 2022.
JAPAN
Last soldiers of Imperial Japanese Army have a warning for younger generations
By Martin Fackler
Kunshiro Kiyozumi, 97, who was the youngest crew member of the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-58 in World War II, on his way to a restaurant to have lunch in Matsuyama, Japan, on April 29.
JAPAN
Japan marks highest-ever temperature of 41.2 C in Hyogo
By Tomoko Otake
Japan's temperature soared to a record 41.2 degrees Celsius in Tanba, Hyogo Prefecture, on Wednesday, surpassing the previous high of 41.1 C.
BUSINESS
Japan should take all possible measures to raise wages, white paper says
Prolonged high prices for food and other goods have pushed down consumer sentiment and real wages, according to the Annual Report on the Japanese Economy and Public Finance for fiscal 2025.