Tomoko Otake - The Japan Times

September 18, 2025

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Tomoko Otake

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Tomoko Otake

Tomoko Otake is a senior writer with a strong interest in health, medical and social issues. A native of Nara Prefecture, she obtained an M.A. in journalism from The University of Montana.

Japan Times

BUSINESS / INTERNATIONAL RATIONALE

Sep 9, 2003

Hello Kitty, Pokemon, Doraemon battle for global supremacy

A number of U.S. celebrities have been spotted toting Hello Kitty paraphernalia in the past year or so, leaving officials of Sanrio Co., the maker of the long-selling character, scratching their heads.

BUSINESS

Sep 2, 2003

IRCJ opts to bail out ailing Mitsui Mining

The Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan announced Monday that it has decided to bail out Mitsui Mining Co. under its resuscitation program.

BUSINESS

Aug 16, 2003

Farm policy may switch from defense to offense

Japan has long been on the defensive over agricultural trade as it sought to protect the nation's farmers, but it may soon go on the offensive.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Aug 9, 2003

Debt-collectors push professionalism, not pain

Despite popular perceptions, profanities and threats are not screamed down the phone and the receiver doesn't end up getting slammed down.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Jul 18, 2003

Town hopes wind bells ring in some new vitality

The tinkling of some 3,000 glass wind bells in a small mountain town in Aichi Prefecture is not just a sign of summer but a sound of hope for community revitalization.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY

Jul 13, 2003

Shin Yoshida leads a double life. And everyone, including his boss, his wife and three children, knows about it.

BUSINESS

Jun 27, 2003

Revival body chief claims applications are flooding in

More than 20 pairs of banks and borrower firms of varying sizes have applied for help from the Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan, IRCJ Chief Operating Officer Kazuhiko Toyama said Thursday.

BUSINESS

Jun 26, 2003

GET BROADBAND (but ignore fine print)

You may have already tuned out the incessant commercials by broadband Internet service providers on TV, in magazines and on the Net, but the Fair Trade Commission is tuning them in.

JAPAN

Jun 25, 2003

Bankruptcy protection shifts burden to cosigner

Print shop owner Yoichi Iwasaki let out a deep sigh of relief when he filed for court protection from creditors in April 2002, but little did he realize that was not the end of his troubles.

JAPAN

Jun 25, 2003

Bankruptcy protection shifts burden to cosigner

Print shop owner Yoichi Iwasaki let out a deep sigh of relief when he filed for court protection from creditors in April 2002, but little did he realize that was not the end of his troubles.

JAPAN

Jun 25, 2003

Bankruptcy protection shifts burden to cosigner

Print shop owner Yoichi Iwasaki let out a deep sigh of relief when he filed for court protection from creditors in April 2002, but little did he realize that was not the end of his troubles.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Jun 25, 2003

Foreign meat producers blast tariff plan

A food service industry group and meat producers from the U.S. and Australia on Tuesday urged the Japanese government not to invoke emergency curbs on imported beef, saying such restrictions would hurt consumers as well as the food industry and exporters.

BUSINESS

Jun 21, 2003

IRCJ needs more time to select first help case

The state-backed Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan is taking longer than expected to select its first revival candidate, IRCJ President Atsushi Saito said Friday.

BUSINESS

Jun 18, 2003

Red tape hinders Singapore Airlines campaign

Attempts by the SARS-battered Singapore Airlines to offer travelers bargain deals have been stalled here by domestic regulations, despite high hopes for mutual promotion of tourism under a bilateral free trade agreement signed recently.

BUSINESS

May 17, 2003

Corporate responsibility in spotlight

If you make up the rules, you've got an excellent chance of winning the game.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

May 9, 2003

Corporate revitalization body rolls up its sleeves

The Industrial Revitalization Corporation of Japan, the government's latest attempt to deal with the nation's bad-loan mess and resuscitate ailing companies, launched full-blown operations Thursday.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

May 1, 2003

Flailing Japanese companies, government turn to U.S. recovery 'guru'

Japan, still struggling to find a way out of its bad-loan quagmire, is looking for salvation from a "guru" credited with turning around whole sectors of U.S. industry.

BUSINESS

Apr 17, 2003

IRC official to ensure it's free of political meddling

The Industrial Revitalization Corp. will hire a compliance officer to ensure that it operates ethically and without political meddling, IRC President Atsushi Saito said Wednesday.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Apr 15, 2003

IRC officials try to play down hardline image

It has a nickname that would turn most customers off.

BUSINESS

Apr 12, 2003

Army of Carlos Ghosns may be in the making

We all know the Carlos Ghosn story.

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.

Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo

Foreign wrestlers have a long history in sumo

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