National Sep 14, 2020

Aging and empty: Suga's hometown highlights Japan's challenges

Yuzawa in Akita Prefecture has seen a decline in its fortunes in recent years, with a low birth rate and high death rate.

National Sep 13, 2020

Hip hop hooray for likely future PM Suga with hometown T-shirt shout-out

Yoshihide Suga, used to suits, a lectern and the trappings of the Japanese government, now finds himself on hip hop T-shirts and bags in his hometown, where the locals are celebrating the man expected to become prime minister in a few days. Designer Ippei Fujita ...

Business / Corporate Feb 18, 2020

Tokyo commuters set for Olympic crush as many firms rule out telework

When Emi Tanimura failed to find a day care slot for her newborn daughter, the need to avoid long periods away from her job at communications firm Sunny Side Up made it necessary to take what is a radical step in Japan; she started ...

National May 1, 2019

Disco's not dead: Japan grooves to bubble beat for Heisei Era sayonara

Disco fans hit the dance floor and partied like it was 1989, reliving the glitz of the "bubble economy" heyday that defined the early years of the outgoing Heisei Era. Tuesday night was the last chance for nostalgic Japanese to bid sayonara to the three-decade ...