Tomoko Otake - The Japan Times

October 31, 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.

BUSINESS

Oct 25, 2003

Daiei decides against IRCJ rehab request

Struggling supermarket chain Daiei Inc. has decided against seeking the help of the state-backed Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan following a disagreement with IRCJ officials over the sale of its assets, it was learned Friday.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Oct 21, 2003

Recruitment exec says change must be embraced

As Japan's economic slump lingers and its once near-universal lifetime employment system collapses, many of the nation's workers are sharing an increased sense of insecurity. But the top executive of a global recruitment consultancy tells them not to fear change.

JAPAN

Oct 17, 2003

Japan and Mexico fail to strike FTA deal

Japan and Mexico threw in the towel Thursday, failing to strike a bilateral free-trade agreement after a four-day marathon of ministerial-level talks.

JAPAN

Oct 16, 2003

Mexico's Fox arrives, but FTA in doubt

Mexican President Vicente Fox arrived Wednesday in Tokyo and immediately faced a tough decision: whether to accept a last-minute compromise on pork imports in stalled negotiations for a free trade agreement.

BUSINESS

Oct 15, 2003

Japan, Mexico work late into night on FTA

Japan and Mexico, racing against the clock ahead of President Vicente Fox's visit to Tokyo, extended talks late into the evening Tuesday to hammer out a free trade agreement.

BUSINESS

Oct 8, 2003

Japan hopes to find key to Mexico FTA behind locked doors

Japanese and Mexican negotiators will lock themselves away in a conference hall in Tokyo's Minato Ward beginning Wednesday in an attempt to hammer out a free-trade accord.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Sep 27, 2003

Nakagawa's farm trade background brings mixed bag to METI portfolio

The appointment earlier this week of Shoichi Nakagawa as minister of economy, trade and industry is a mixed blessing for the nation's trade policy.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Sep 27, 2003

IRCJ takes salvage target list up to six

The Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan announced Friday that it will bail out Matsuya Denki Co., an Osaka home appliances retailer, and Meisei and Co., a chemical trading company also based in Osaka, under its corporate resuscitation scheme.

Japan Times

BUSINESS / CABINET INTERVIEW

Sep 26, 2003

IRCJ not only interested in 'small potatoes': Kaneko

New industrial revival minister Kazuyoshi Kaneko shrugged off accusations that the Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan has a "small potatoes" approach to rescuing ailing firms.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Sep 24, 2003

Shizuoka pulls out all the stops in bid to woo foreign investors

Shizuoka wants you badly -- if your company is considering building a base in the prefecture or doing business with any of the 100 or so local firms.

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.

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

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Mamoru Iwai, stationmaster of Keisei Ueno Station, says that, other than earthquake-proofing, the former Hakubutsukan-Dobutsuen (Museum-Zoo) Station has remained untouched.

Inside Tokyo's 'phantom' stations — and the stories they tell

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

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