The government and manufacturers of face masks are facing a growing challenge to keep up with demand amid the coronavirus outbreak, fueling concern that shortages of such items will continue for some time and leading to frantic searches by many people for stores that ...

Rosita Harum said it was "the most precious moment" of her life when she was reunited with her father, a former leprosy patient, after they were separated for 61 years by a Malaysian policy that quarantined people with the disease. Born to ethnic Chinese parents, ...

While the U.S.-China trade dispute, uncertainties about the global auto market and rising costs for developing cleaner cars are common concerns for automakers, the slowdown in India's market has emerged as a new headache. The slowing Indian economy has taken a heavy toll on Suzuki ...

Electronics companies are trying to take advantage of their experience and knowledge to manufacture motors, inverters and sensors that will become indispensable to assemble autonomous and electric cars.

Restaurants and shops in Yokohama Chinatown hope government relief measures for businesses introduced with the Oct. 1 consumption tax hike will help bring in new customers. They are pinning their hopes on a rebate program for cashless purchases aimed at mitigating the impact of the ...

Due to its graying society and shortage of drivers, Japan quickly needs to get an autonomous transportation system put into place.

Hideomi Ryu played a central role in getting his native city of Kumamoto elected to host games for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, even when naysayers thought it was no more than a pipe dream in a community dominated by baseball. The 75-year-old chairman of ...

In closing her testimony during court proceedings of a class-action lawsuit filed by relatives of leprosy patients, plaintiff Nobuko Harada told the Kumamoto District Court in a quivering voice, "All I want is an apology from the government while I am alive." Harada, 74, is ...

The murder trial more than half a century ago of Matsuo Fujimoto, a man afflicted with leprosy, was a bizarre affair. Due to fears of infection, court proceedings were virtually closed to the public. The trial was not held in a courtroom but at an ...

Operating a restaurant is just one of the jobs Nabi Togo assumes in her quest to help revitalize Tsuyazaki, a scenic fishing area facing the Genkai Sea in Fukutsu, Fukuoka Prefecture. She plays four other roles as well, when she is called upon. On Fridays, Togo, ...