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JAPAN
Jul 29, 2004

FTC moves on bid-rigging

The Fair Trade Commission on Wednesday ordered 113 construction companies to stop rigging bids on public works for the Niigata Municipal Government.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Jul 29, 2004

Who prefers concrete and cars to Tokyo's natural gem?

With its oddly ear-shaped black-and-white striped body, the hammer-size mimigata tennannsho, a grass that grows in the depths of Mount Takao's forests, has long been an object of fascination and loathing to hikers in the western Tokyo quasi-national park, where it's not just its grotesque shape that...
JAPAN
Jul 29, 2004

Pension delinquency down -- nominally

The delinquency rate for national pension premium payments fell to 36.6 percent in fiscal 2003 from a record 37.2 percent the previous year, with the number of people required to pay having declined, the Social Insurance Agency said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 29, 2004

Accused deserter Jenkins reassigned to the U.S. forces based in Japan

The United States has reassigned accused U.S. Army deserter Charles Jenkins to the U.S. forces based in Japan from South Korea, where he was posted when he apparently defected to North Korea in 1965, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said Wednesday.
EDITORIALS
Jul 29, 2004

The sustainable whaling option

I t has been just 100 years since Norway began hunting whales in the Antarctic seas, but celebration seems hardly warranted. The International Whaling Commission is effectively paralyzed because its 57 members, split almost equally between prowhaling and antiwhaling nations, are unable to assemble a...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 29, 2004

Migrants' remittances home exceed ODA

Elisa Rey puts a wad of yen into a small, brown envelope at her home. Far away in Peru, her monthly remittances -- set aside from her job in an electronics factory south of Tokyo -- have already built a house that few could dream of in her poor suburb of Lima.
BUSINESS
Jul 29, 2004

Aozora to boost overseas operations

Aozora Bank, the privatized successor of the nationalized Nippon Credit Bank, plans to expand lending and investing operations in foreign markets, mainly the United States and Europe, an Aozora Bank official said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 29, 2004

UFJ fights to keep MTFG merger hopes alive

UFJ Holdings Inc. said Wednesday it has filed an appeal against a court order to suspend its merger negotiations with Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc., stressing it plans to go ahead with the merger.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jul 29, 2004

Nozaki proposes interleague play

Hanshin Tigers President Katsuyoshi Nozaki said Tuesday he has proposed a two-league system that would involve intensive interleague play as an "ultimate" plan to settle the dispute over realigning the professional baseball system.
BUSINESS
Jul 29, 2004

Ministry again maintains upbeat economic assessment

The Finance Ministry on Wednesday kept its upbeat assessment of the economy for the May-July period, bolstered by strong sales of air conditioners and beverages amid the hot summer.
BUSINESS
Jul 29, 2004

Net profit at Sony surged 20-fold in first quarter

Sony Corp. said Wednesday its net profit for the April-June period posted a 20-fold jump to 23.26 billion yen, helped by the firm's mobile phone handset venture with Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications AB.
BUSINESS
Jul 29, 2004

Honda posts 12% increase in first-quarter profit

Honda Motor Co. said Wednesday its group net profit for the April-June quarter rose 12.2 percent from a year earlier to a record 114.2 billion yen, due mainly to robust sales in Asia and Europe.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 29, 2004

Automakers get in touch with their feminine side

Automakers used to think cars in pastel colors with floral-patterned seats were key to attracting female buyers.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 29, 2004

Ogi set to become first female president of Upper House

Former transport minister Chikage Ogi will become the first female president of the House of Councilors this week at the extraordinary Diet session, party sources said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jul 29, 2004

Demand in Asia lifts vehicle exports by 4%

A total of 2,390,701 cars, trucks and buses manufactured in Japan were exported in the January-June period of 2004, up 4 percent from a year earlier for the third consecutive year of increase.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Jul 29, 2004

The Morlocks are coming!

MOSCOW -- The most common word used by foreigners to describe Soviet Russia was "gray." Be it the cityscape, clothes or official culture, everything looked evenly unpleasant, unexciting, drab. Nowadays, the maddening communist evenness is gone, but Russia has become home to something equally disturbing...
JAPAN
Jul 29, 2004

Man who killed as child back in court

A man who as a youth was convicted and served time for his role in a slaying that shocked the nation pleaded guilty Wednesday to confining and wounding a male acquaintance in May.
BUSINESS
Jul 29, 2004

Asahi Breweries assumes control of Haitai Beverage

Asahi Breweries Ltd. said Wednesday it has bought a controlling stake in South Korea's third-largest soft-drink maker and plans to make it a consolidated subsidiary.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 29, 2004

Prosecutors drop NPA shooting case

An ex-cop and three others with Aum Shinrikyo ties who were arrested earlier this month over the 1995 shooting of the National Police Agency chief were released Wednesday after prosecutors gave up on charging them due to lack of evidence.
BUSINESS
Jul 29, 2004

Tax nonpayment falls for fifth year

The nonpayment of corporate, income and other state taxes declined for the fifth straight year in fiscal 2003 to 2.03 trillion yen, down about 220 billion yen from the previous year, according to a National Tax Agency report released Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jul 29, 2004

Accused deserter Jenkins reassigned to the U.S. forces based in Japan

The United States has reassigned accused U.S. Army deserter Charles Jenkins to the U.S. forces based in Japan from South Korea, where he was posted when he apparently defected to North Korea in 1965, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda said Wednesday.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / NAME OF THE GAME
Jul 29, 2004

Old-school fun and honor

OK, I'll admit it again, I am a sucker for well-made old-style games. The "Metal Slug" series is not especially old, but I love the way it has refused to adapt to the brave new world of 3-D gaming.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 28, 2004

Something for your head

Animators have always had a thing for Surrealism, going back to Disney's "Silly Symphonies" in 1934 and beyond. (Disney, in fact, collaborated with the most notorious Surrealist of all, Salvador Dali, on 1946's fabled "Destino" project.) Japanese animators, however, are the arch Surrealists of the movie...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 28, 2004

Giving thanks on a day of cinema

The Dreamers Rating: * * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: Bernardo Bertolucci Running time: 117 minutes Language: English/some French Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] As a child, I was raised as a Catholic, and went to church on Sunday, um, religiously. I can still remember...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 28, 2004

Women on the verge of adoption

Casa de los babys Rating: * * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: John Sayles Running time: 95 minutes Language: English/Spanish Opens July 31 [See Japan Times movie listings] Gender roles are becoming increasingly fuzzy, even in Hollywood. As women go all out for traditionally male stuff (murderous...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jul 28, 2004

Director has whale of a time making experimental 'Mind Game'

Now an animation veteran, with 17 years in the business, Masaaki Yuasa still looks young enough, acts deferential enough and dresses down enough to be mistaken for a rank-and-filer. Instead, he is a rising industry star hailed for his work on the "Crayon Shinchan" franchise, the nearest Japanese animation...
JAPAN
Jul 28, 2004

Building accident task force in works

The infrastructure ministry will form a task force to look at ways to prevent structure-related accidents, such as the revolving-door fatality in March at the Roppongi Hills complex in Tokyo, officials said Tuesday.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight