National Feb 28, 2021

Pandemic puts pressure on Japan to open up rice stockpile to charities

As job losses have surged due to the impact of the spread of the novel coronavirus, demand for food handouts has skyrocketed in Japan.

National Oct 30, 2020

Japan government set to stop buying Chinese drones

It must also navigate increasingly choppy waters between China and Japan's closest ally, the U.S., which is at odds with Beijing over a range of issues.

National / Science & Health Jul 9, 2020

With apps and remote medicine, Japan offers glimpse of doctor visits in post-virus era

As virus cases spiked in April, Japan temporarily eased restrictions on remote medical care, allowing doctors to conduct first-time visits online or by telephone.

Business | FOCUS Feb 12, 2020

Japan's efforts to raise wages wane as firms embrace merit-based pay

More Japanese companies are shifting to merit-based pay as competition for workers heats up, but the change risks holding back the sort of blanket wage hikes the prime minister says are needed to inflate the economy. Ahead of annual labor talks set for March 11, ...

Business / Economy Nov 6, 2019

Labor shortages in Japan's construction sector provide unexpected economic boost

As Japan's construction firms are squeezed by the tightest labor market since the 1970s and a rapidly aging population, they are pouring investment into technology — and providing unexpected support to an economy reeling from the bitter U.S.-China trade war. The industry sees artificial intelligence ...

Business Nov 6, 2019

Despite Japan’s quest to go cashless, nation’s growing elderly population proves reluctant

Cash is king in Japan, and more so for the country's fast-aging population who are still deeply reluctant to give it up. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's push to make more Japanese — the world's most dedicated cash-hoarders — switch to using cashless payments is producing ...

National / Politics Jul 14, 2017

Abe's sinking popularity may thwart quest to revise Constitution's Article 9

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's cherished goal of revising Japan's pacifist Constitution has become more difficult to achieve after a plunge in his popularity and the erosion of public trust, a ruling party lawmaker said on Wednesday. Support for Abe has plummeted to its lowest since ...

Business Jul 22, 2016

Abe's maglev decision reflects political calculus over economics

Few doubt Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's decision to invest public funds in a $90 billion high-tech maglev railway makes political sense. Whether it makes equally good economic sense is less clear. Proponents say lending government money to Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai) to speed ...