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July 27, 2024
 

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Francis Tang
The Ukedo fishing port in the town of Namie in Fukushima Prefecture in March. In 2022, Taiwan lifted most of its import restrictions on food produced in five prefectures including Fukushima.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 24, 2024
Taiwan set to lift remaining import restrictions on Japanese food
The latest measure will cover products such as mushrooms and the meat of wild animals.
As of Sunday, Kobayashi Pharmaceutical reported 279 deaths and 2,274 hospital visits due to health issues related to its beni kōji supplements, among which 461 required hospitalization.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 23, 2024
Kobayashi Pharma's president and chairperson resign over health scandal
For the first time in its history, someone outside of the Osaka-based drugmaker's founding family will become its president.
A passerby holding a parasol wipes her face as she walks on the street amid a heatstroke alert in Tokyo and other prefectures, in Tokyo on July 9.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Boiling Point
Jul 19, 2024
How to prevent and respond to heatstroke in Japan this summer
Staying hydrated and controlling the rise in one's body temperature are the fundamental ways for preventing and alleviating heat-related illnesses.
People lay flowers before the two year anniversary of the shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in the city of Nara on July 7.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 16, 2024
Trump shooting reminds Japan of similar attacks on politicians at home
The attack on the former U.S. president evoked memories of similar incidents involving Japan's prime ministers.
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games' opening ceremony, which will be held outside of a stadium for the first time in history, has attracted a lot of interest from Japanese fans.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 10, 2024
Japan fans shun pricey Olympics tickets even as top-tier packages sell out
Travel agencies report a noticeable drop in demand for Paris Olympics tours amid a weakening of the yen and the introduction of a new booking system.
A man takes a break under a cooling mist as the government issued a heatstroke alert in Tokyo and other prefectures in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 9, 2024
Number of heatstroke patients in Japan jumps fourfold amid sweltering temperatures
By prefecture, Tokyo had the most heatstroke-related transports at 907. Aichi came in second with 763 cases.
Pedestrians shelter themselves from the sun using parasols as they cross a street in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo on Thursday. The temperature in Tokyo hit 35 degrees Celsius just after noon on Thursday, the first time so far this year.
JAPAN
Jul 4, 2024
Mercury hits 39.3 degrees Celsius in Shizuoka
Many cities experienced 35 degree weather, resulting in heatstroke alerts being issued for several regions across Japan.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida show off the new banknotes in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 3, 2024
Japan releases new banknotes for first time in 20 years
The Bank of Japan plans to introduce a total of ¥1.6 trillion ($9.9 billion) worth of the new banknotes into circulation on Wednesday alone.
Samples of newly designed yen banknotes at the National Printing Bureau's Tokyo plant on June 19
BUSINESS / EXPLAINER
Jul 1, 2024
What you need to know about Japan's new banknotes
The last time the country redesigned its banknotes was 20 years ago.
Health ministry officials enter Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's plant in the city of Osaka on March 30.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 28, 2024
Dozens more deaths may be linked to Kobayashi Pharmaceutical's supplements
The ministry has instructed Kobayashi Pharmaceutical to create a plan to carry out a probe into the causal relationships between the deaths and their products.
Kansai International Airport in Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture, in December
JAPAN / Society
Jun 28, 2024
Deportations over immigration violations in Japan up 65% in 2023
Foreign nationals subject to deportation procedures nearly doubled to 18,198.
Shimpei Tominaga ran a furniture trading firm in Udine, a city famous for hosting the Far East Film Festival, the biggest Asian film festival outside of Asia.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 27, 2024
Italian city honors Japanese man who died after trying to break up a fight
The mayor of Udine proclaimed a day of mourning on Wednesday in honor of Shimpei Tominaga, a 56-year-old businessman who ran a furniture trading firm in the city.
An Aeon store in Yokohama in 2022. Aeon currently employs about 1,500 specified skilled workers group-wide.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 26, 2024
Aeon to ramp up hiring of foreign workers under specified skills visa framework
The retail giant is planning to employ 4,000 foreign workers with specified skilled worker visas by 2030 amid a labor shortage.
The Cabinet Office's latest white paper on Japan's aging society predicts that the percentage of people age 65 and above will reach 38.7% of the country's population by 2070.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 21, 2024
More of Japan’s elderly are lonely and have fewer friends, white paper says
Less than half of respondents age 65 years and above polled in 2023 said they had at least an average number of friends, compared with 72.2% in 2018.
The share of women in legislative, senior official and management roles increased by 1.7 percentage points from 2023 and 4.6 percentage points from 2006, according to a World Economic Forum gender equality report.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 12, 2024
Japan makes gains in political empowerment in gender equality report
Overall, Japan ranked 118th out of 146 countries in the World Economic Forum report, making it the lowest-ranked G7 nation.
Shizuoka Gov. Yasutomo Suzuki (left) meets with JR Central President Shunsuke Niwa in the city of Shizuoka on June 5.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 7, 2024
Kishida maintains 2037 target for Tokyo-Osaka maglev line
Prime minister pledges support of the central government in helping stakeholders meet the deadline.
To qualify for the advance payment offered by the city of Saitama, the single parent must reside in the city and fulfill several other criteria.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 6, 2024
Saitama aids single parents with advance child support payments
The city will offer a maximum amount of ¥50,000 per month per child to the affected parent for up to three months, and seek reimbursement from the former spouse.
Satoshi Harada, an official at the Meteorological Agency, speaks at a news conference on Monday morning in Tokyo. The agency asked people in the area to remain vigilant for quakes of a similar level for a week.
JAPAN
Jun 3, 2024
Strong quake shakes Japan's hard-hit Noto Peninsula area
The magnitude 6 earthquake hit the peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture Monday, just over five months after a powerful temblor rocked the area.
Magnetic paper train tickets have been in use in Japan since the late 1960s.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 30, 2024
Eastern Japan rail operators to introduce QR code tickets by March 2027
JR East and seven other railway operators will replace their decades-old magnetic ticketing system to improve efficiency and sustainability.
Yasutomo Suzuki (second from right) celebrates in the city of Shizuoka on Sunday after being elected governor of Shizuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Politics
May 27, 2024
Opposition-backed Yasutomo Suzuki wins Shizuoka gubernatorial vote
Suzuki’s victory could pave the way for restarting the maglev train line project that had been delayed due to opposition from his predecessor.
Japan's population continues to fall even as foreign resident count rises
The number of residents in Tokyo as of Jan. 1 rose by 0.03% from a year before, data shows, marking a year-on-year increase for the first time in three years, while the country's other 46 prefectures saw their populations continue to decline.
Japan’s minimum wage set for record ¥50 hike in major boost
Demonstrators rally to demand a big hike in minimum wages in Tokyo last week.
One dead, three missing as heavy rain batters Tohoku
Camera footage shows the Mogami River bursting its banks in Tozawa, Yamagata Prefecture, on Friday morning.
Yen melt-up nudges Japanese stocks into correction territory
Japanese stocks are down 10% from their July peak as the yen strengthens.
Yen rally could help end crushing wage decay in Japan
Some economists say a sticky weak yen trend would have a negative impact on Japan's real wage growth.
When did summer in Japan stop being fun?
Summer in Japan is now consistently brutal enough to drive you indoors and keep you there until autumn.
Japan’s minimum wage set for record ¥50 hike in major boost
Demonstrators rally to demand a big hike in minimum wages in Tokyo last week.
Japan loses top spot on strongest passport list to Singapore
Japan had the strongest passport for six years running from 2018, before being dethroned by Singapore on the 2024 list.
Why Japan's mysterious stash of classified funds escapes scrutiny
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi (right) during a meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Japan eyes gold — and the future — as Olympic men's soccer campaign begins
Japan midfielder Yu Hirakawa controls the ball during a match against the United States in Kansas City, Kansas, on June 11.

Podcast

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

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

JNTO promotes sustainable tourism initiatives
JNTO promotes sustainable tourism initiatives

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