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BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Nonaka U-turn on postal bills may turn tide

Hiromu Nonaka, a heavyweight in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and a vocal opponent of postal deregulation, said Friday that he will not obstruct the passage of the bills through the Lower House in the current Diet session.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 18, 2002

Work sharing solves Netherlands' economic woes

THE HAGUE -- As Japan remains mired in an economic slump, the idea of work sharing is increasingly attracting the attention of the government, labor unions and business organizations as a way to handle the record level of more than 5 percent unemployment.
JAPAN
May 18, 2002

Cows born in spring '96 face inspection

The farm ministry will inspect all cows born between March and April 1996 for symptoms of mad cow disease, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Tsutomu Takebe said Friday.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Mitsui O.S.K.'s group profit dips

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. said Friday its group net profit fell 3.6 percent in fiscal 2001 due primarily to higher sales costs, lower transportation fees and the sluggish global economy.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Takeda Chemical pretax profit up

OSAKA -- Takeda Chemical Industries Ltd. said Friday its group pretax profit increased 37 percent to 359.21 billion yen in fiscal 2001 from the previous year due to brisk sales of medical products at home and abroad, and the weak yen.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Matsushita eyes new PDP plant

OSAKA -- Matsushita PDP Co., a subsidiary of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., will increase output of plasma display panels by setting up a new 50 billion yen plant, Matsushita officials said Friday.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Economy has hit bottom, report says

The Japanese economy has bottomed out, the government declared Friday for the first time during the current recession. The government gave no indication, however, of whether they expected economic recovery.
JAPAN
May 18, 2002

Marathon champ Takahashi fourth on athletes' tax list

Olympic marathon champion Naoko Takahashi has made her debut on the list of Japan's top taxpayer athletes, coming in fourth.
Japan Times
JAPAN / MUSEUM MUSINGS
May 18, 2002

Pieces at Tokyo furniture museum all miniature history lessons: curator

A piece of furniture speaks volumes about history, lifestyles and people's sense of beauty, according to Masashi Saito, curator of the Furniture Museum in Tokyo's Harumi district.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Nippon Yusen group profit down

Major shipping firm Nippon Yusen K.K. said Friday its group pretax profit for fiscal 2001 fell 29.7 percent from the previous year to 50.11 billion yen, as the firm was hit by a sharp reduction in freight charges.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Output revised up; capacity falls

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on Friday upwardly revised the nation's industrial production figures for March by 0.3 of a percentage point to 92.8.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Ajinomoto net balance in the black

Ajinomoto Co. said Friday its group net balance returned to the black in the year that ended March 31 due mainly to increased sales of pharmaceuticals and dietary supplements. Consolidated net profit in fiscal 2001 came to 31.44 billion yen, a turnaround from the previous fiscal year's loss of 11.55...
Japan Times
JAPAN / WHALE WATCHING
May 18, 2002

Arguments of whalers, opponents both have merit, writer believes

Hiroto Kawabata is one of the few people who bring a measure of equanimity to the whaling debate, where knee-jerk reactions are often the rule and reasoned debate the exception.
JAPAN
May 18, 2002

Student climber sets world record

A 23-year-old Japanese university student became the youngest person to scale the tallest peak on each of the world's seven continents when he conquered Mount Everest on Friday, his supporters said.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Yasuda in final talks on tieup with Saison

Yasuda Fire & Marine Insurance Co., the nation's third-largest nonlife insurer in terms of assets, is in final talks to turn Saison Automobile & Fire Insurance Co. into an affiliate, Yasuda Marine said Friday.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2002

Showa Shell turns focus toward customers' needs

With most of its restructuring completed, Showa Shell Sekiyu K.K. is now focusing on stimulating customer demand by improving its products and services, according to John S. Mills, the new president of the country's fourth-largest oil wholesaler.
SOCCER / World cup / COHOSTING
May 17, 2002

A history of hate thy neighbor

Like most Asian countries, South Korea had never really considered bidding for the World Cup.
COMMENTARY
May 17, 2002

Iranians-in-exile mull return of the shah

BEVERLY HILLS, California -- These days the animated chatter in this storied city's sun-splashed cafes and deep-carpeted restaurants is not about the aftermath of 9/11, or the fall of Enron, or even the Middle East imbroglio. It's about the coming revolution in Iran.
SUMO
May 17, 2002

Maru remains tied for Summer lead

Ozeki Tochiazuma must have prayed to the sumo gods to avoid his second straight loss Thursday but yokozuna Musashimaru was as calm as the Buddha as he remained undefeated at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament.
JAPAN
May 17, 2002

73% use Net at work for nonwork

Some 73 percent of Japanese workers have used the Internet for personal purposes in the workplace, according to a recent survey by research firm Macromill Inc. The survey shows only 27.5 percent of the respondents said they have never used the Internet for personal reasons at work.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 17, 2002

Swallows blank Giants

A solo home run from Akinori Iwamura was all Yakult needed as the Swallows shut down the Yomiuri Giants' powerful offense with a 1-0 victory Thursday night at the Tokyo Dome.
COMMENTARY
May 17, 2002

Japan at its inconsistent worst

Japan's overheated reaction to the May 8 North Korean refugee incident at the Japanese consulate-general in Shenyang, northeast China, is worrying.
BUSINESS
May 17, 2002

Trading house Nissho Iwai's net profits plunge 94%

Trading house Nissho Iwai Corp. said Thursday that its group net profit plunged 94.1 percent to 1.18 billion yen in the year to March 31, due chiefly to a 28 billion yen cut in interest income and a string of special losses.
BUSINESS
May 17, 2002

DIC paid 308 billion yen for bad loans from Shinsei, Aozora

The Deposit Insurance Corp. bought 113 bad loans worth 444.4 billion yen from Shinsei Bank between August and the end of March at a cost of 286.9 billion yen, the Financial Services Agency revealed Thursday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / WHALE WATCHING
May 17, 2002

Ecotoxicologist warns of pollutants hurting whales, dolphins, humans

While whaling experts and negotiators debate the future of whaling, some specialists worry that whale health and the safety of whale meat are not getting enough attention.
BUSINESS
May 17, 2002

Nissin logs 21.5% fall in net profits

Nissin Food Products Co. said Thursday it posted a group net profit of 11.94 billion yen in fiscal 2001, down 21.5 percent from a year earlier due to appraisal losses on its securities holdings and growing sales costs.
BUSINESS
May 17, 2002

JR Tokai says revenues up 2.5%

Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai) said Thursday its consolidated operating revenues grew 2.5 percent to 1.37 trillion yen in fiscal 2001, due to increased traffic on its Tokaido Shinkansen Line bullet train services.
JAPAN
May 17, 2002

Diplomats to be held 10 more days

Veteran Russian affairs expert Masaru Sato and fellow Foreign Ministry employee Akira Maejima, under arrest on suspicion of misusing ministry funds, will be kept in detention until May 25, the Tokyo District Court said Thursday.

Longform

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