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May 29, 2025
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May 29, 2025
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Nippon Steel headquarters in Tokyo. The U.S. government is poised to receive a so-called golden share in U.S. Steel as a condition for approving Nippon Steel's proposed acquisition of the American company.
BUSINESS / Companies
Golden share fix proposed for knotty Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel deal
By Francis Tang
The plan would give the U.S. government a veto over certain company decisions.

More coverage

Nippon Steel partnership go-ahead boosts U.S.-Japan cooperation
Garage meets and sleepless flights: How Nippon Steel's negotiator stuck at U.S. merger
Nippon Steel headquarters in Tokyo. The U.S. government is poised to receive a so-called golden share in U.S. Steel as a condition for approving Nippon Steel's proposed acquisition of the American company.
Agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi speaks at a Lower House farm committee in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN
With latest move, farm ministry sets sights on ¥1,800 for a 5-kg bag of rice
By Kanako Takahara
The agriculture ministry will sell older batches of stockpiled rice to smaller retailers and rice shops via no-bid contracts, and pause offerings to big buyers.
Seven & I hopes to focus more on its 7-Eleven convenience stores.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Seven & I’s move away from banking leaves market wondering
By Kazuaki Nagata
7-Eleven's ATMs are an important part of the convenience store operator's business.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth delivers remarks at the National Memorial Day Observance at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / FOCUS
Hegseth to face questions on U.S. commitment at top Asian defense conference
By Jesse Johnson
The event comes amid growing anxiety over Washington's tariff program and uncertainties about U.S. defense policy.
Demonstrators hold signs during a protest in support of international students at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Japanese universities urged to open doors to students blocked from Harvard
By Tomoko Otake
The education ministry has asked universities nationwide to support students affected by the White House's push against foreign enrollments at Harvard.
Demonstrators hold signs during a protest in support of international students at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on Tuesday.

JAPAN

Evacuees stand in line to receive water from a water tank car at an evacuation center in the aftermath of an earthquake, in Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Jan. 4, 2024.
Japan enacts legislation aiming to strengthen disaster preparedness
The legislation was compiled based on lessons learned from the Noto Peninsula earthquake in January 2024.
An election poster board set up in Tokyo's Suginami Ward on Friday
Tokyo installs extra-large campaign boards ahead of metropolitan assembly vote
In some areas, boards with up to 70 slots are being installed, a move also intended to prepare for the Upper House election that will follow shortly after.
'Expo grandma' completes tour of all Osaka Expo pavilions
Central and Tokyo governments ordered to compensate over probe
Japan's 2025 Osaka Expo draws 5 million visitors in first six weeks
Japan enacts bill to promote AI development and address its risks

BUSINESS

Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivers a speech during the ASEAN-GCC-China Economic Forum's official dinner in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
China aims to capitalize on U.S. tariff turmoil with new ASEAN-GCC forum
By Gabriel Dominguez
The summit with Southeast Asian and Arab Gulf states is the latest sign of more countries looking to join hands to fend off U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff push.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda
Ueda to monitor risk of high long-term bond yields affecting shorter-term rates
By Yoshiaki Nohara and Toru Fujioka
The comments come at a time of heightened concern about volatility at the long end of the bond market.
Japan’s ‘Middle Country’ bank is puzzling Chinese tourists
By Gareth Allan
SpaceX's Starship spins out of control
By Joey Roulette and Joe Skipper
Japan backs AI chip startup EdgeCortix in boost to defense tech
By Mayumi Negishi
Dalton connects with activist investor-linked fund to pressure Fuji Media
By Mayumi Negishi and Yuki Furukawa

WORLD

French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a news conference with Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Macron weighs recognition of Palestinian state as Gaza toll mounts
By John Irish
French officials are considering the move ahead of a United Nations conference France and Saudi Arabia are co-hosting from June 17 to 20.
Closed-circuit television cameras in a New Delhi street in on May 21. Global makers of surveillance cameras have clashed with Indian regulators over new rules that require them to submit materials for assessment in government labs, driven in part by alarm about China's capabilities.
India's alarm over Chinese surveillance prompts crackdown on cameras
By Aditya Kalra
Rejecting the request from manufacturers for a delay, India said its policy "addresses a genuine security issue" and must be enforced.
Sun, sand and suspects: Spain tackles fugitives seeking a haven
By Valentin BONTEMPS
Residents pick up the pieces one day after deadly China chemical blast
U.K. envoy urges trans-Atlantic tech alliance, citing China threat
By Ryan Chua
RFK Jr. says COVID-19 shot isn’t recommended for healthy kids
By Gerry Smith, Jessica Nix and Rachel Cohrs Zhang

Sports

Onosato celebrates winning the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo on Sunday.
Historic rise to yokozuna just the beginning for Onosato
By John Gunning
There is a good argument to be made that Onosato is already the most widely decorated wrestler in sumo history.
Shohei Ohtani smashes 20th homer as Dodgers pound Guardians
Onosato, 24, promoted to sumo grand champion in record time
Utsunomiya Brex clinch record third B. League title in decisive Game 3
Pacers beat Knicks to move one win away from NBA Finals

Opinion

The Chinese Communist Party has significantly expanded its global influence operations by using tactics like election interference, disinformation, elite capture and pressure on the diaspora to sway politics and policies in democracies worldwide.
Is Beijing engineering election wins for 'soft on China' politicians?
Edo Naito
Beijing legally requires all citizens to support Communist Party policies and views ethnic Chinese everywhere as instruments for advancing its global goals.
How can Europe deter Putin? Revive the ‘Reforger.’
By James Stavridis
AI hallucinations? What could go wrong?
By Brad Glosserman
Lessons from India-Pakistan war: Were China's arms overrated?
By Brahma Chellaney
It’s too easy for foreigners to buy Japanese property
By Gearoid Reidy

ENVIRONMENT

The white-tailed eagle's wintering grounds include Hokkaido, northern Honshu, the Russian coast, the southern Kamchatka Peninsula and the Kuril Islands.
Eagle nest discovery sparks opposition to megasolar project
By Eric Johnston
Groups want to put a stop to the project near eastern Hokkaido's Kushiro Wetlands National Park.
Nickel rush for stainless steel guts Indonesia tribe's forest home
By Jack Moore and Bagus Saragih
Do Japan's trees no longer occupy the sacred space they used to?
By Eric Margolis
'Serious problem': Afghan capital losing race against water shortages
By Susannah Walden
When extreme weather hits, Japan scientists will have faster answers on climate links
By Tomoko Otake

CULTURE

Director Jafar Panahi, Palme d'Or award winner for the film "Un simple accident" ("It Was Just an Accident"), poses during a photocall after the closing ceremony of the 78th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France.
Iranian filmmaker Panahi urges 'freedom' as he wins top prize at Cannes
By Adam PLOWRIGHT and Fiachra Gibbons
The dissident filmmaker's "Un Simple Accident" tells the tale of five Iranians confronted with a man they believed tortured them in jail.
Japan's Seto wins International Critics Award at Cannes
Truth is slippery in ‘Suspicion,’ a detective story based on a true crime
By Kris Kosaka
At Cannes, Fukada spotlights J-pop’s ban on idol romance
By Adam PLOWRIGHT
AI fiction is already here. Are humans ready?
By Thu-Huong Ha

LIFE

After establishing Lagoon Brewery in 2021, Yosuke Tanaka began making export-only "nihonshu" (Japanese sake) and later, "craft sake," a new genre of sake that isn't bound by the rules of traditional sakemaking.
Brewed from rice, water and tomatoes: The growth of ‘craft sake’
By Weiwen Lin
Hampered yet inspired by the strict regulations for new brewers, a growing breed of sake producers are making the beverage on their own creative terms.
Tokyo's top bites — in a suburban mall food court
By Robbie Swinnerton
As spring unfolds, sea bream turns into a prized catch
By Makiko Itoh
Jeremy Strong brings male power-dressing to Cannes
By Adam PLOWRIGHT
Uh-oh, is the rest of the world making JRPGs better than Japan?
By Owen Ziegler

COMMUNITY

Drawn to tea ceremony while volunteering at a Japanese garden in Phoenix, Arizona, Michele Laudig (right) came to learn a “common language of movement and ritual” that brought her into new communities in New York City and Tokyo.
A moving meditation: Finding serenity in tea ceremony across space and time
By Michele Laudig
After an American writer ventured into the world of tea ceremony, its lessons transformed her relationship to Japan and brought her into communities bonded by movement and ritual.
Joshua Thomson: ‘Comedy is a pill that’s easier to swallow’
By Laura Pollacco
Detroit-Nagoya network empowers women-owned businesses around the world
By Jessica Kozuka
Ayano Kikuchi: ‘People need to take care of themselves holistically’
By Olivia Boissel
Kotomi Li: 'I refuse to choose death'
By Kat Joplin

Editors' Picks

ASIA PACIFIC
As ASEAN touts unity, Philippines seeks consensus on South China Sea
By Gabriel Dominguez
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. (center), locks hands with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim (left) and Sultan of Brunei Hassanal Bolkiah during a group photo at an Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.
ENVIRONMENT
Eagle nest discovery sparks opposition to megasolar project
By Eric Johnston
The white-tailed eagle's wintering grounds include Hokkaido, northern Honshu, the Russian coast, the southern Kamchatka Peninsula and the Kuril Islands.
BASEBALL
Fighters already showing last season's playoff run was no fluke
By Jason Coskrey
Fighters starter Hiromi Ito pitches against the Hawks in Fukuoka on April 29.
COMMUNITY
A moving meditation: Finding serenity in tea ceremony across space and time
By Michele Laudig
Drawn to tea ceremony while volunteering at a Japanese garden in Phoenix, Arizona, Michele Laudig (right) came to learn a “common language of movement and ritual” that brought her into new communities in New York City and Tokyo.
ENVIRONMENT
Are microplastics hurting our fertility?
By Tomoko Otake
A worker sorts plastic waste for recycling at Minato Resource Recycle Center in Tokyo in 2019. Japan has been criticized by environmental groups for its strategy on plastics, which is heavily reliant on recycling instead of reduction.

Podcast

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

Longform

Construction equipment sits idle in a park near Shiba Toshogu shrine in Tokyo's Minato Ward. While Japan has a history of treating its trees with reverence, green coverage is said to be lacking in most of the major cities.
Do Japan's trees no longer occupy the sacred space they used to?
By Eric Margolis

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Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027
Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027

WHAT’S TRENDING

COMMENTARY
Lessons from India-Pakistan war: Were China's arms overrated?
By Brahma Chellaney
A Chinese J-10B fighter jet is put on display at the China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, China, in October 2016. The short May conflict between India and Pakistan became a live trial for Chinese arms, exposing vulnerabilities in its fighter aircraft and air defense systems.
BUSINESS
Luxury Tokyo penthouse sold for over $65 million in new record
By Lisa Du
Sales of luxury properties in Tokyo, like Azabudai Hills’ Aman Residences, have pushed up average real estate prices in the capital.
BUSINESS
Golden share fix proposed for knotty Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel deal
By Francis Tang
Nippon Steel headquarters in Tokyo. The U.S. government is poised to receive a so-called golden share in U.S. Steel as a condition for approving Nippon Steel's proposed acquisition of the American company.
BUSINESS
Japan loses top creditor status for first time in 34 years
By Erica Yokoyama
Japan lost its position as the world’s largest creditor nation for the first time in 34 years despite posting a record amount of overseas assets, with Germany overtaking the country.
SUMO
Onosato locks in promotion to yokozuna
Onosato speaks to reporters after receiving a report from the Yokozuna Deliberation Council, on Monday in Ami, Ibaraki Prefecture.