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December 03, 2023
 

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Tetsushi Kajimoto
For Tetsushi Kajimoto's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Commuters at Tokyo Station earlier this month. A Reuters poll showed six out of 10 economists expect major firms' pay hikes in 2024 to exceed this year's.
BUSINESS / Companies / ANALYSIS
Nov 20, 2023
Japan's back-to-back wage bonanza would open door for BOJ exit
The news comes as the government pushes companies to hike pay to help offset rising living costs.
Tomoko Yoshino, president of Rengo, attends a meeting in 2022.
BUSINESS
Nov 17, 2023
Japan's largest labor union to seek worker pay hikes beyond 2024
Rengo said last month it will demand wage hikes totaling 5% or more next year.
People pass an electronic board showing the rate of the yen against the dollar on a street in Tokyo on Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Nov 15, 2023
Former currency czar sees structural factors behind yen weakness
"I wonder whether overseas investors may be thinking what's in it for investing in Japan," said Rintaro Tamaki.
Takeshi Niinami, chairman of business lobby Keizai Doyukai, says the Bank of Japan "must normalize" monetary policy.
BUSINESS
Nov 10, 2023
Japan needs to prepare for 'life with interest rates': lobby head
Takeshi Niinami, chairman of business lobby Keizai Doyukai, said the Bank of Japan "must normalize" monetary policy to help weed out incompetent firms.
Rengo President Tomoko Yoshino says the labor organization will seek wage hikes of 5% or more next year.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 19, 2023
Japan's largest labor group aims for wage hikes of 5% or more
Rengo will finalize its stance in December ahead of next year's wage negotiations.
A rebound in auto output and falling raw material costs helped lift Japan's business sentiment in the third quarter.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 2, 2023
Japan's business mood improves as economic revival continues
The tankan survey suggests conditions for the BOJ to phase out its massive stimulus could fall into place, even as policymakers remain cautious.
Newly appointed economy minister Yoshitaka Shindo arrives at the Cabinet Office on Thursday
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 14, 2023
New economy minister sees positive signs for end of deflation
Little is known about Yoshitaka Shindo's views on monetary and fiscal policies as he served in an intraparty post for the past eight years.
People make their way through Tokyo's Ameyoko shopping district. In a sign rising inflation is already taking a toll on consumption, Japan's household spending suffered its biggest drop in nearly 2½ years in July.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Sep 7, 2023
China's economic gloom hangs over Japan's long-awaited recovery
If Beijing fails to shore up demand with meaningful stimulus, that could potentially delay an exit from the Bank of Japan's ultraloose monetary policy.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks to reporters after meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 22, 2023
BOJ's Ueda meets Kishida but says yen volatility wasn't discussed
The talks took place after the dollar's recent ascent above ¥145, a level that last September triggered Japan's first yen-buying operation since 1998.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 5, 2023
Japanese firms offer biggest pay hikes in 30 years as wage growth broadens
A total of 5,272 unions affiliated with Rengo showed an average pay hike of 3.58%, or ¥10,560 per month, the biggest increase since the 3.9% seen in 1993.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 4, 2023
Tokyo in constant dialogue with U.S. and others on currencies, finance minister says
The remarks likely signal Tokyo"s desire to keep the market on guard about possible currency intervention to prop up the yen, which has been hovering near ¥145 to the dollar.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 3, 2023
Improving Japan business mood signals steady economic recovery
Companies expect to increase capital expenditure and project inflation to stay above the Bank of Japan"s 2% target five years ahead, the quarterly tankan showed.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
May 9, 2023
Japan says G7 will discuss strengthening global banking system
The recent collapse of First Republic Bank has exacerbated investor worries about the U.S. banking sector, and raised calls for better global oversight.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
May 2, 2023
U.S. banking troubles won't affect Japan, says Economy Minister Shigeyuki Goto
While optimistic overall, Goto urged financial institutions and authorities to respond firmly to liquidity risks that have led to difficulties in the West.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
May 1, 2023
Inflation and labor crunch prodding Japan's smaller firms to raise pay
Wages have barely risen in Japan since the asset bubble burst in the 1990s but have crept up recently, as companies face pressure to compensate employees for the rising cost of living.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 10, 2023
Japan's current account swings back to black on overseas investment
The current account surplus stood at ¥2.1972 trillion ($16.59 billion) in February, the Finance Ministry said.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 15, 2023
Why Japan's spring wage talks are a big deal this year
Every March, management of major Japanese firms meet with unions for wage talks across industries that set the tone for employees" pay in the new fiscal year.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 3, 2023
Kishida urges extra inflation-relief steps as Japan's households struggle
The news comes as households grapple with intensifying cost-of-living pressures amid elevated inflation for items such as energy and food, hitting consumption and smaller businesses.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 28, 2023
Incoming BOJ deputy head brushes aside near-term tweak to easy policy
Shinichi Uchida suggested that any review of the central bank"s policy framework could take about a year.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 17, 2023
With BOJ pick, Kishida strikes political balance and draws line under Abenomics
Having an academic helm the BOJ is unprecedented in Japan, where the job traditionally rotates between a central banker and an official from the Finance Ministry.
We already know what will happen at COP28
Activists dressed up like CEOs take part in a fake banquet near the Eiffel Tower in Paris on Monday where they feign the celebration of company profits over climate responsibility.
Japan air conditioner king Daikin eyes custom chips for energy savings
Daikin plans to start introducing the custom chips in high-end air conditioners from 2025 and is looking at using them in about a fifth of units by the end of the decade.
U.S. forces dispatch two Ospreys for rescue operations after fatal crash
A U.S. military Osprey at the Futenma base in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, in 2022
Four teams remain in Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes, report says
The Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays and the two Los Angeles teams — the Dodgers and Angels — remain active in the sweepstakes to land Shohei Ohtani.
Abe's former faction in focus as LDP political fund scandal deepens
A fundraising party for the LDP's largest faction, which was lead by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe until his death
The entertainment story of the year is long overdue
The talent agency formerly known as Johnny & Associates announced it would change its name after acknowledging the long history of abuse company founder Johnny Kitagawa inflicted on young men. The news was followed by the removal of company signage bearing Kitagawa’s name.
Japan’s 2023 buzzword of the year is all about winning
Tigers manager Akinobu Okada speaks during a news conference in Tokyo after the buzzword of the year was announced on Friday. The team's slogan, an indirect reference to victory, took the top spot.
U.S. Osprey crash rekindles safety concerns in Japan
A CV-22 Osprey at the U.S. military's Yokota Air Base in Tokyo in September 2018
Shibuya Sakura Stage to cap once-in-a-century redevelopment around station
A view of a plaza within Shibuya Sakura Stage, what Tokyu Land Corporation is calling the final puzzle piece in its redevelopment of the area around Shibuya Station.
Xi’s Shanghai visit sells city’s ‘innovation’ image
Pedestrians along the Bund in Shanghai on Oct. 29. The Chinese government is pushing a narrative that the city will play an important role in reinvigorating the nation’s economy.

Podcast

Pages from a new Otaku Dictionary catalog the lexicons of Japan’s various subcultures.
A problematic otaku dictionary and the Japanese approach to sitting

Longform

Yoshiko Koide sits in a classroom at Nagoya College where she teaches a Japanese-language observation seminar.
How a dictionary came to spark outrage among the web’s otaku
By Thu-Huong Ha and Yukana Inoue

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