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JAPAN
Jan 21, 1998

Level of pollen in Tokyo expected to rise this season

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is predicting this season will be far worse than last year for allergy sufferers in the capital.The amount of cedar pollen in the air, which can cause noses to run and eyes to itch, will be between 0.9 times and 1.3 times greater than usual in Tokyo this year, according...
JAPAN
Jan 21, 1998

Reports on deficit-covering-bond remarks irk Kato

Secretary General Koichi Kato of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party expressed his disapproval Wednesday of some morning media reports that he said misinterpreted his comments from the previous day."I did not mean at all that the government is considering moving back the target year to stop issuing...
JAPAN
Jan 21, 1998

Osaka projects in 668 billion yen of red ink

OSAKA -- One-quarter of Osaka's high-profile, third-sector projects are now 668 billion yen in the red, but city officials are still pumping money into them in the hopes they will eventually turn a profit.Third-sector projects, which are corporations jointly established by Osaka and private businesses,...
JAPAN
Jan 21, 1998

Panel sets goals for bullet train expansion projects

A panel of representatives from the government and the three ruling parties gave priority Wednesday to two projects for expanding the nation's bullet train network, Transport Minister Takao Fujii said.Priority was given to two sections of bullet train line: One between Hachinohe and Shin Aomori on the...
JAPAN
Jan 21, 1998

Three opposition parties merge to form Minseito

Three opposition parties said Wednesday they will merge Friday to form a new party with an old name in Japanese politics: Minseito, literally "Democratic Politics Party."Former Prime Minister Tsutomu Hata announced the name for the new party, to be formed by Kokumin no Koe (Voice of the People), From...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Hashimoto pushes plan to aid banks with public funds

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto said Tuesday that the government's proposal to use public funds to inject fresh capital into banks would not run counter to its "Big Bang" reform efforts nor signal a return to the "convoy system" of financial sector protection.Speaking before a plenary session of the...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Ushio urges businesses to curtail wining, dining expenses

The business sector should try to cap its social expenses to sharply reduce the amount spent on wining and dining, Jiro Ushio, chairman of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai), said Tuesday.Ushio's remarks come after police arrested former executives of Nomura Securities Co....
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Nation sees mercury dip to lowest temperatures of season

Various parts of the nation registered their lowest temperatures for the season Tuesday as the archipelago was enveloped by a typical winter atmospheric pressure pattern.Tuesday was also designated on the lunar calendar as the coldest day of the year, known as Taikan, which literally translates as "big...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Economy remains stagnant: BOJ

The economy "remains stagnant," the Bank of Japan said Tuesday in an even less optimistic view than it had in December, when the bank said economic growth had stalled.In its monthly economic review for January, the BOJ said sluggish domestic demand has had a negative impact on production, employment...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Hashimoto hints at new type of bond to finance construction

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto hinted Tuesday that he would consider the possibility of issuing a new type of government bond to finance a wider range of projects than traditional construction bonds.Speaking before the Lower House Budget Committee, Hashimoto expressed interest in a bond with a shorter...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Teikyo rugby players held in gang rape

Five members of Teikyo University's rugby team were arrested Tuesday on suspicion of raping a woman in a karaoke booth in Tokyo's Chuo Ward last November, police said.About 10 team members and others were present when the alleged rape took place, and investigators from the Metropolitan Police Department...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Russia's small firms urge Japan to continue support

Japan's cooperation in helping Russia nurture its small and midsize businesses is important to improving overall relations between the two countries, said Irina Hakamada, chairwoman of the Russian State Committee for Support of Small Business, on Tuesday.In a meeting with Foreign Minister Keizo Obuchi,...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

SDP gives up drive to accelerate ban on political donations

After several months of discussions, the Social Democratic Party on Tuesday gave up efforts to persuade the ruling Liberal Democratic Party to implement ahead of schedule a ban on corporate and group donations to individual politicians.The proposed ban is to take effect in 2000 under the political funds...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Banks, brokers lavished millions of yen on highway director

A Japan Highway Public Corp. director was entertained by some 10 banks and securities companies, including Nomura Securites Co., to the tune of about 10 million yen, it was learned Tuesday from statements made by those involved.Tekehiko Isaka, 54, was allegedly entertained by the firms over a 2 1/2...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Seoul wants to continue talks on fishery pact

South Korea does not want a bilateral fisheries pact with Japan to be scrapped by the Japanese government, and the two governments should continue negotiations for a new pact with the current one intact, South Korean official Kim Yoon Hwan told Foreign Minister Keizo Obuchi on Tuesday.Obuchi explained...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Foley urges Japanese government to open markets

U.S. Ambassador Thomas Foley on Tuesday urged the Japanese government to implement further deregulation, saying such measures will open its markets to trading partners and also help strengthen the Japanese economy."My government urges Japan to deregulate because we see Japanese regulations as forestalling...
JAPAN
Jan 20, 1998

Japan, U.S. establish new defense mechanism

Japan and the United States on Tuesday launched a comprehensive mechanism for bilateral defense planning and the establishment of common standards and procedures to strengthen security ties.The decision, made in line with defense cooperation guidelines adopted last year, was officially declared at a...
JAPAN
Jan 19, 1998

Shochiku president, son ousted

In a corporate coup d'etat, the board of directors at film and theater giant Shochiku Co. removed President Toru Okuyama and his son, Kazuyoshi, a senior managing director, from their posts Monday.Shochiku, Japan's pioneer film company, known for its "Tora-san" series, decided to name Senior Managing...
JAPAN
Jan 19, 1998

University allows chemistry prodigies an early start

Chiba University on Monday allowed three second-year high school students with high marks in chemistry to skip their senior year and enter college this spring, becoming the first university to do so, officials said.Seiji Kajita, 17, of Fukuoka, Kazutoshi Sato, 16, of Chiba, and another 17-year-old Fukuoka...
JAPAN
Jan 19, 1998

Hashimoto gets testy over calls to resign

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto told a Diet committee Monday that he would resign as prime minister immediately if it would help change the gloomy economic climate hanging over the nation."But things are not that easy," Hashimoto said angrily, in reply to a demand from an opposition lawmaker that Hashimoto...
JAPAN
Jan 19, 1998

Government to take closer look at 'Amakudari'

The government will launch a drastic review of "amakudari," the practice in which bureaucrats retire early and take key positions in industries previously under their jurisdiction, in an effort to prevent further corruption, Chief Cabinet Secretary Kanezo Muraoka said Monday.Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto...
JAPAN
Jan 19, 1998

Fuji to apply to build cars in China

Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. will apply to Chinese authorities this year for a license to produce cars jointly with China Guizhou Aviation Industry Corp., the president of the Japanese automaker said Monday.The company also announced that it will provide support for German automaker Porsche AG in Japan...
JAPAN
Jan 19, 1998

Columbia seeks to build up trade, investment

Columbia is aiming to strengthen trade and investment relations with Japan and improve its own industrial infrastructure to encourage investment, Columbian Foreign Minister Maria Mejia told Foreign Minister Keizo Obuchi on Monday, ministry officials said.Obuchi welcomed Columbia's efforts to improve...
JAPAN
Jan 19, 1998

Hong Kong trade official seeks to allay avian flu fears

Asserting that the high-risk period for avian flu has passed, a Hong Kong trade official Monday sought to alleviate Japanese tourists' concerns about the disease that has killed six people so far in the former British colony."Hong Kong is a very safe place to visit. There is no need for restrictions...
JAPAN
Jan 19, 1998

Finance Ministry considering new penalties for Nomura

The Ministry of Finance has begun studying whether new administrative penalties can be imposed on Nomura Securities Co. in connection with a bribery scandal that led to the arrest of two of its former executives, ministry sources said Monday.The ministry will look into whether the giant brokerage, rather...
JAPAN
Jan 19, 1998

Banks under pressure to cut salaries

Several Cabinet members said Monday that banks should be urged to lower their salary levels, known to be considerably higher than those at firms in other industries, at a time when the government is preparing to use public money to handle the banking crisis.According to Chief Cabinet Secretary Kanezo...
JAPAN
Jan 16, 1998

BOJ keeps hands off discount rate

The Bank of Japan held its first Monetary Policy Meeting under new antisecrecy rules Friday and immediately announced that the Policy Board unanimously decided to leave monetary policy and the 0.5 percent official discount rate unchanged.The new format, adopted in advance of the April enforcement of...
JAPAN
Jan 16, 1998

Hashimoto restates dedication to stability, tax cuts

Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto on Friday stressed the need to deliver on government pledges to implement a 2 trillion yen pump-priming tax cut and to pass financial stabilization measures.Speaking before the House of Representatives Budget Committee, Hashimoto noted that markets have already responded...
JAPAN
Jan 16, 1998

Nikkei average leaps on expectation of stimulus measures

The Nikkei average recorded its second biggest jump ever Friday thanks to growing expectations that the government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party are shifting policies to save the economy and the stock market.The 225-issue Nikkei average soared 924.47 points, or 6.1 percent, to end the postholiday...
JAPAN
Jan 16, 1998

MPD cop allegedly helped halt Daiwa investigation

An Metropolitan Police Department officer arrested this week on suspicion of taking bribes from Daiwa Securities Co. was asked by the brokerage to help halt a 1993 investigation into the firm, police and prosecution sources alleged Friday.It is possible the MPD's investigation targeting an employee...

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji