search

 
 
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jan 17, 2023

Could the Akutagawa Prize get its first American winner?

Gregory Khezrnejat, whose short story “Kaikonchi” is up for the literary award, sees writing in Japanese as a minor rebellion against English's assumed dominance in global culture.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 17, 2023

Brazil's crowdfunded insurrection leaves paper trail for police

Pix, a wildly successful government-run payments system, has become a key financial pillar underpinning Bolsonaro's election-denial movement.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 17, 2023

China’s population falls, heralding a demographic crisis

Deaths outnumbered births last year for the first time in six decades. Experts see major implications for China, its economy and the world.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Jan 17, 2023

With this Japanese ace, the ghost stories are true

Fans, teammates and even opponents are excited to see new Mets ace Kodai Senga's trademark 'ghost fork' — if they can manage to track it.
Japan Times
SOCCER
Jan 17, 2023

Jurgen Klopp searches for solutions to Liverpool 'low point'

The cost of Liverpool's bid for an unprecedented quadruple last season, which brought the club victories in the FA and League Cup finals, is still being felt as injuries and losses mount.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 17, 2023

China's economy slows sharply, with 2022 growth one of worst on record

GDP grew 2.9% in October-December from a year earlier, data showed Tuesday, slower than the third-quarter's 3.9% pace.
PRESS / Corporate Trends
Jan 17, 2023

Announcement: “Originator Profile Collaborative Innovation Partnership” established

The Japan Times, Ltd. (President and CEO: Minako Suematsu) today announced its participation in a nonprofit initiative “Originator Profile (technology) Collaborative Innovation Partnership (OPCIP)”, alongside firms in the media and advertising industries from Japan and abroad.
PRESS / Corporate Trends
Jan 17, 2023

オリジネーター・プロファイル(OP)技術研究組合の設立について

株式会社ジャパンタイムズ(本社:東京都千代田区、取締役社長:末松弥奈子)は、国内外のメディア、広告関連企業などとともに「オリジネーター・プロファイル(Originator Profile=OP)技術研究組合」を設立しました。
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 17, 2023

Japan pushes global counterparts to regulate cryptocurrencies like banks

FTX's bankruptcy and fraud charges against Sam Bankman-Fried have battered the crypto sector, highlighting gaps and differences in global digital-asset regulation.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, in her inaugural news conference as Japanese leader late Tuesday, called South Korea an “important neighbor" and a “vital partner.”
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 22, 2025

Takaichi seeks to dispel fears Seoul-Tokyo ties could falter under her government

The prime minister has called South Korea an “important neighbor" and a “vital partner” in addressing challenges confronting the international community.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends a NATO leaders summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, on July 12. The leader's efforts to conduct diplomacy in the face of conflict have drawn comparisons with British wartime leader Winston Churchill.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Jul 20, 2023

Why Zelenskyy's diplomacy is a key factor in Ukraine's efforts to win war

The leader's counteroffensive came at a critical time, sandwiched between two summits — the Group of Seven summit in May and a NATO summit earlier this month.
Beyond Meat plant-based burger patties for sale at a plant-based grocery store in Hong Kong in June 2019.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 21, 2023

The coming disruption of animal production

It will be easier to persuade people to avoid meat from animals if they can eat meat and other animal products that taste like those they know, but do not require raising animals.
SoftBank has raised at least $24 billion in loans and bonds so far in 2025 and is seeking to raise more in the overseas bond market.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 22, 2025

SoftBank seeks $2 billion in bond sales as it chases AI bets

The Japanese technology investment giant has raised at least $24 billion in loans and bonds so far in 2025.
Nissan project leader Junichi Inoue stands in front of the company's prototype electric minivehicle that can be charged using an onboard solar power generation system, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Oct. 15.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 22, 2025

Nissan develops solar-powered electric minivehicle

The vehicle can eliminate the need for grid-based charging if used mainly for short-distance driving including for commuting or shopping.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is greeted by Abdulla bin Touq Al Mari, the UAE's minister of economy, during a reception in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Monday.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 20, 2023

Kishida's Middle East visit creates an opportunity for Japan

Kishida visit shows Japan's policy vis-a-vis the Middle East is shifting from the traditional energy-securing economic diplomacy to a more strategic foreign policy.
Demonstrators protest against Japan's plan to discharge treated radioactive water from the damaged Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant into the ocean, in Seoul on July 7.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jul 20, 2023

Fukushima water opposition is steeped in anti-science

Skepticism over Japan’s plan to discharge treated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant must not give way to scaremongering.
With the recent sumo jaunt to London being essentially a goodwill exercise, <i>rikishi</i> were far more outgoing and relaxed than normal.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Oct 22, 2025

London exhibition perhaps sumo's most successful trip abroad

Over the course of the tournament, sumo received wall-to-wall coverage in mainstream British media.
Iraqi Shiite leader Muqtada al-Sadr delivers a speech in Najaf, Iraq, on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 21, 2023

Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr hints at comeback with torching of Swedish Embassy

By having his supporters torch the Swedish Embassy in Baghdad, the unpredictable Shiite cleric has dragged an administration run by his rivals into a diplomatic crisis.
Hokkaido Gov. Naomichi Suzuki attends a meeting to tackle bird flu held in Sapporo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 22, 2025

Bird flu season begins in Japan with infection confirmed at Hokkaido farm

The Hokkaido government has started to cull some 459,000 laying hens at the farm and imposed a ban on the transportation of hens within a 10-kilometer radius.
The Central Business District on a rainy day in Beijing. Both U.S. and European companies with exposure to China could be hit by its sluggish growth as its post-COVID-19 momentum has faltered rapidly.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 21, 2023

China's sagging economy looms over quarterly results around the world

Both U.S. and European companies with exposure to China could be hit by that economy's sluggish growth as its post-COVID momentum has faltered rapidly.
New Zealand's Hannah Wilkinson celebrates after her teams victory over Norway at the Women's World Cup in Auckland on Thursday.
SOCCER / Women's World cup
Jul 21, 2023

Australia and New Zealand get Women's World Cup off to rousing start with wins in front of record crowds

Australia and New Zealand earned slim victories at home to kick off the Women's World Cup.
A new cybercrime pact being considered will be an unprecedented move that the United Nations expects will make responses to such crimes quicker and more effective.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Oct 22, 2025

U.N. cybercrime pact to be signed in Hanoi raises hopes and concerns

The agreement is an unprecedented move expected to boost responses to cybercrime, but activists and experts have warned about possible abuses from its vague language.
Police cordon off an area near the site of a shooting in Auckland on Thursday.
SOCCER / Women's World cup
Jul 20, 2023

Women's World Cup teams shaken but safe following deadly shooting in Auckland

"New Zealand Football are shocked by the incident in Auckland this morning," NZ Football said. "We can confirm that all of the Football Ferns team and staff are safe."
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi poses with members of the newly formed Cabinet on Tuesday night.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 22, 2025

Takaichi fails to boost female representation in her Cabinet

Takaichi appointed just two women to her 18-member Cabinet on Tuesday, despite promising high levels of female representation earlier.
SOCCER / Women's World cup
Jul 20, 2023

Soccer feeling the heat from Japan's scorching summer

Postponements of matches reflect the growing challenges facing amateur teams as they attempt to cope with Japan’s increasingly hostile summer months.
A recent cyberattack on brewer Asahi Group Holdings resulted in the company suspending shipments.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 22, 2025

AI-optimized cybercrime increasingly targeting Japan

Many of the attacks originate in China, using underground marketplaces that sell access and sensitive data to other cybercriminals.
Shohei Ohtani was named to the AL All-Star team as both a hitter and pitcher for the third straight season.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jul 21, 2023

Shohei Ohtani's All-Star helmet draws winning bid of $98,010

The helmet Shohei Ohtani used in the Major League Baseball All-Star Game on July 11 was sold for $98,010, or about ¥13.7 million, on the MLB official auction site.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent takes a picture during the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 23 in New York.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 22, 2025

Supply-chain economics beat tariff politics

Twenty years ago, China learned the hard way that once supply chains reorganize, they never return to their previous form.

Longform

The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.