Mayumi Negishi - The Japan Times

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Mayumi Negishi

For Mayumi Negishi's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:

JAPAN

Dec 25, 2005

Cabinet approves austere 2006 budget worth 79.7 trillion yen

The Cabinet formally approved on Saturday a 79.686 trillion yen general account budget for fiscal 2006 that would help slow down growth of the nation's debt.

BUSINESS

Dec 23, 2005

State allocates 50 billion yen in 2006 budget

The government announced Thursday how to spend an as-yet-unallocated 50 billion yen in the 79.69 trillion yen fiscal 2006 budget.

BUSINESS

Dec 23, 2005

U.S. expects sluggish beef exports in '06

U.S. beef exported to Japan is estimated to total about 100,000 tons in 2006, one-third the level prior to the ban imposed in December 2003, the president and CEO of the U.S. Meat Export Federation said Thursday.

JAPAN

Dec 21, 2005

79.69 trillion yen budget submitted to Cabinet

The Finance Ministry gave the Cabinet a 79.69 trillion yen fiscal 2006 draft budget Tuesday that will allow it to keep new government bond issuance below 30 trillion yen for the first time in five years.

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Dec 20, 2005

Doha Round still snagged on farm trade

It's time for Japan's negotiators to protect rice farmers in other ways besides high tariffs, argues an economist at Hitotsubashi University, after six days of frustrating world trade talks that ended Sunday in Hong Kong.

BUSINESS

Dec 17, 2005

2 trillion yen in tax increases to take effect in fiscal 2006

The ruling coalition approved over 2 trillion yen worth of tax increases Thursday to be implemented in fiscal 2006. The hikes include the elimina tion or reduction of tax breaks, a cigarette levy increase and higher tax rates on wine and so-called third-category beers.

JAPAN

Dec 16, 2005

Tax breaks may soon be pulled; hikes eyed

The ruling coalition Thursday recommended scrapping income, residential and corporate tax breaks and raising liquor and tobacco levies in its reform proposals for fiscal 2006, and agreed to discuss a possible consumption tax increase for fiscal 2007.

BUSINESS

Dec 15, 2005

LDP again eyes raising tax on cigarettes in 2006

The Liberal Democratic Party reopened discussions Wednesday on raising the tax on cigarettes after Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki told executives of the LDP's tax panel the government needs the extra revenue to start putting its finances in order next year.

BUSINESS

Dec 14, 2005

LDP moves to hike tax on 'third-category' beer

The Liberal Democratic Party's tax panel decided Tuesday to raise the tax on beerlike drinks not classified as beer or low-malt "happoshu" in the latest clash between the revenue-hungry government and the beer industry.

JAPAN

Dec 13, 2005

Ban on U.S. beef lifted, but don't expect import flood, just price turmoil

The government on Monday approved the resumption of U.S. beef imports, lifting a two-year ban that has been in place since the discovery of mad cow disease in what had been one of Japan's biggest sources of low-cost beef.

JAPAN

Dec 9, 2005

Panel gives final OK for young U.S. beef

is just one step. The real test is still to come, of Japan's ability to check (that) the U.S. is implementing precautions" against BSE, said Yasuhiro Yoshikawa, who heads the prion research group under the commission that drafted Thursday's report. "The report was based on a number of preconditions, such as safety measures to be implemented in the U.S. in the future," said Yoshikawa, also professor of agricultural life science at Tokyo University. "There were moments when members (of the panel) talked about refusing to complete the report."

Japan Times

BUSINESS

Dec 9, 2005

Beef-safety report being misused: panelist

The key messages in Thursday's report by the Food Safety Commission's prion committee have been misinterpreted by the media and the government, and the panel itself was used to serve political ends, the panel's deputy chairman declared Thursday.

BUSINESS

Dec 3, 2005

Weak yen OK, reflects state of economy, Tanigaki figures

Finance Minister Sadakazu Tanigaki signaled Friday that a weak yen is acceptable because it is a true reflection of the state of Japan's economy.

BUSINESS

Dec 2, 2005

IRCJ holds final round of bidding for Kanebo

Three candidates placed their bids Thursday in the final round to select a buyer for struggling and scandal-plagued Kanebo Ltd. and Kanebo Cosmetics Inc., now managed by the government-backed Industrial Revitalization Corp. of Japan.

BUSINESS

Dec 1, 2005

Seniors to pay more for medical service

The government and Liberal Democratic Party-New Komeito ruling coalition agreed Wednesday to raise medical costs for the elderly in two stages, starting in 2006.

BUSINESS

Nov 30, 2005

State lenders to be whittled to one

The government and ruling Liberal Democratic Party agreed on a plan Tuesday to create a single public lender by scrapping one, privatizing two and integrating the remaining five.

BUSINESS

Nov 26, 2005

Commission backs cutting tax breaks

While the government must slash its wasteful spending, taxes still need to be raised to support the aging society, the Tax Commission said Friday in its fiscal 2006 tax-reform proposals.

BUSINESS

Nov 19, 2005

State special accounts: Why they face scrutiny

A subcommittee of the Finance Ministry's Fiscal System Council recommended Friday that the 31 special accounts in the government's budget be streamlined by absorption into the general account, privatization, or management by independent administrative institutions.

BUSINESS

Nov 16, 2005

Koizumi wants bond issues cut

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi instructed his Cabinet and Liberal Democratic Party leaders Tuesday to keep new issues of government bonds "as near 30 trillion yen" as possible in the fiscal 2006 budget.

JAPAN

Nov 15, 2005

Tower exhibit adds weight to public debt

If you were to stack up 10,000 yen bills equal to the value of the country's estimated public debt in 2005 of 773 trillion yen, the pile would easily reach the stratosphere, according to a government-sponsored exhibit set to open at the Tokyo Tower.

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.

[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

When trying to trace your lineage in Japan, the "koseki" is the most important form of document you'll encounter.

Climbing the branches of a Japanese family tree

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Students ‘study abroad’ on island of Suo Oshima

Students ‘study abroad’ on island of Suo Oshima

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