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April 25, 2024
 

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Shawna Kwan
For Shawna Kwan's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Office workers in the Central district in Hong Kong on Nov. 20
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 8, 2024
Hong Kong workers demand 6% raise to return to office fully
In a survey, 27% of people asked for a raise if their employers required them to work in the office five days a week.
Pedestrians walk past a McDonald's restaurant in Hong Kong.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 13, 2023
Hong Kong takes economic hit as Chinese tourists fail to splurge
Changes in travel habits come as the Chinese economy weakens and youth unemployment remains high.
A woman carries food to customers at a Japanese restaurant in Hong Kong on Wednesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Aug 27, 2023
Hong Kong turns to tycoons to get party scene back on track
The government is urging major property groups to help boost the nighttime economy via drink coupons, free events and later shopping hours.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 5, 2023
Hong Kong’s reopening brings scant gains after pandemic and crackdown
Tens of thousands of high-skilled workers left to escape the city’s COVID-19 regime and limits imposed on freedoms after Beijing enacted a national security law in 2020.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 8, 2022
Cheaper yen lures Hong Kong's rich to Japanese real estate
International property agents said sales have increased this year as the yen fell to multi-decade lows against the Hong Kong dollar.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 8, 2022
Hong Kong’s hotel quarantine system buckles under China demand
Monthly mainland Chinese arrivals at Hong Kong airport jumped nearly 11,000% between April and June to 30,222 — accounting for one-third of airport passengers last month.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
May 23, 2022
New Hong Kong leader’s vow to fix housing crisis draws skeptics
Lee's manifesto had a clear focus on how he would safeguard China's constitution and Hong Kong's Basic Law, while policy issues lacked extensive detail.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 1, 2022
Tycoons keep building Hong Kong offices as vacancies jump
The oversupply underscores an unprecedented challenge to property developers as they grapple with an expat exodus and some of the world's harshest border controls to curb the virus.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Dec 15, 2021
Hong Kong’s property tycoons sacrifice profit to appease Beijing
Two years after protests rocked the city and Chinese authorities pointed a finger of blame at sky-high home prices, developers are under pressure to help ease its housing crisis.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2021
Chinese tourists’ disappearance is remaking Hong Kong retail
The number of restaurants and food grocery outlets has grown 9%.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 7, 2021
From Singapore to Rio, the smart money is on greener buildings
'There's a growing shift toward including the green credentials of a building within what constitutes competitive advantage for a developer,” according to one industry observer.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Nov 24, 2020
Hong Kong campus rocked by protest becomes ‘prison’ a year later
Today, what had once been a bustling, freely accessible campus is locked down, its protest movement extinguished in a series of aggressive moves to stifle dissent in the Asian financial hub.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Sep 30, 2020
How the world’s most expensive skyscraper deal turned sour
The background of the investors behind the record-breaking deal drew as much interest as the transaction itself.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Jul 29, 2019
Hong Kong police struggle to contain unpredictable protesters
From an airport sit-in to violent clashes in a suburban area to aimless marches through busy shopping districts, Hong Kong's weekend of unrest illustrated the challenge of quelling a protest movement that's leaderless, unpredictable and widespread.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / ANALYSIS
Jun 14, 2019
How encrypted messages and car 'crashes' helped Hong Kong protesters
Thousands of black-clad demonstrators braved tear gas and rain for 79 days in Hong Kong's 2014 "Umbrella Movement." The lessons of that agitation appear to have made the city's protesters swifter and better prepared in some of their latest attempts to weather police action.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Jun 11, 2019
U.S. voices 'grave concern' over proposed Hong Kong extradition law as city braces for showdown
The U.S. expressed "grave concern" over Hong Kong legislation that would for the first time allow extraditions to mainland China, raising pressure on Beijing as the city braced for a potentially historic showdown over the proposal.
'Sugar Baby Riri' gets nine-year prison term over romance scam
Mai Watanabe, who went by the moniker “Sugar Baby Riri,” dated older men and swindled them out of money by telling them fictitious heartbreaking stories about herself to gain their sympathy.
Over 40% of Japan's municipalities at risk of vanishing, study finds
Of 1,729 local municipalities nationwide, 744 have been identified as being at risk of disappearing.
Tokyo issues strong warning on yen intervention as currency dips further
Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki speaks during a meeting with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and South Korean Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok on the sidelines of IMF and G20 meetings in Washington last week.
Princess Aiko makes debut at imperial garden party
Princess Aiko attends an imperial garden party in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Japan's former PM Aso meets Trump for talks on security and economy
Former U.S. President Donald Trump and Taro Aso, vice president of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party, in New York on Tuesday. The Japanese government’s top spokesman on Wednesday played down the meeting as one conducted "in the capacity of one lawmaker" and “without the government’s involvement.”
For amateur sumo, a fresh start offers hope against time-wasting and gamesmanship
Wrestlers prepare for the start of a bout at the 2023 Sumo World Championships in Tokyo. Starting this month, placing one hand on the clay first is no longer allowed.
LDP veteran Nikai's youngest son expected to succeed him in Wakayama
Toshihiro Nikai, former secretary-general of the Liberal Democratic Party, announced in March that he would not run in the next Lower House election to take responsibility for the political funds scandal that rocked his party and his own faction.
New workers name Shohei Ohtani as 'dream boss' for two years running
Shohei Ohtani has been overwhelmingly voted as the “dream boss” for people who started working in April, according to a survey.
A craft beer crawl through Tokyo’s top bars, brewpubs and dives
If all you drink is Asahi, Sapporo and Kirin, you're depriving yourself of some of the best craft beer Tokyo has to offer — and there sure is a lot of it out there.
'Sugar Baby Riri' gets nine-year prison term over romance scam
Mai Watanabe, who went by the moniker “Sugar Baby Riri,” dated older men and swindled them out of money by telling them fictitious heartbreaking stories about herself to gain their sympathy.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Later this month, author Shogo Imamura will open Honmaru, a bookstore that allows other businesses to rent its shelves. It's part of a wave of ideas Japanese booksellers are trying to compete with online spaces.
The story isn't over for Japan's bookstores
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Prize winner Maki Imoto catches light with glass
Prize winner Maki Imoto catches light with glass

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