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BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2023

Questions raised over Japan's habit of putting together large-scale supplementary budgets

In the past few years, spending big has in effect been the basic tenet for extra budget compilation, as the ruling camp pushed aggressively for massive additional outlays.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / Longform
Jan 16, 2023

The race to save the Japanese giant salamander

River infrastructure is causing the salamander's decline. To stop Japan from losing this rare species, conservationists are calling for an alternative vision of rural development.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal / FOCUS
Jan 16, 2023

The drug mules carrying Europe's cocaine in their guts

More than a sixth of the cocaine consumed in France is smuggled inside the bodies of drug mules from its poverty-stricken South American region of Guiana.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2023

New AI smartphone app will be able to decipher Japanese cursive manuscripts

The app's beta version is set for release later this month, while the full version is scheduled to become available to the public this March.
Japan Times
TENNIS
Jan 16, 2023

Rafael Nadal victorious at Australian Open but heartbreak for Nick Kyrgios

Top-seeded Nadal recovered from a second-set wobble to defeat the 38th-ranked Briton 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 at Rod Laver Arena.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 16, 2023

TV announcer turned portfolio manager beats 97% of Japanese peers

Maiko Uda reckons the Bank of Japan will raise its cap for 10-year sovereign yields to at least 1.5% within two years from 0.5% now.
JAPAN
Jan 16, 2023

COVID-19 tracker: Tokyo logs 4,433 new cases

Tokyo reported 4,433 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, down by 3,766 week on week.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 16, 2023

Japan opposition party lawmaker Hakase Suidobashi resigns

The comedian-turned-politician of Reiwa Shinsengumi had stopped his political activities in October last year after being diagnosed with depression.
"'Permanent peace' was uttered for the entire world. I hope there will be peace all over the world," said Michiko Suzuki, granddaughter of former Prime Minister Kantaro Suzuki.
JAPAN
Aug 21, 2025

Granddaughter conveys former wartime prime minister's wish for peace

Michiko Suzuki, a granddaughter of former Prime Minister Kantaro Suzuki, continues to convey his wish for peace through her writings and lectures.
Icons of Google's Artificial Intelligence app BardAI (or ChatBot), OpenAI's app ChatGPT and other AI apps are displayed on a smartphone screen.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jul 20, 2023

Google tests AI tool that is able to write news articles

Some executives who saw Google’s pitch described it as unsettling, and two people said it seemed to take for granted the effort that went into producing accurate and artful news stories.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shakes hands with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on the sidelines of the Group of Seven leaders' summit in Kananaskis in Alberta, Canada, on June 17.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Aug 21, 2025

Can Ishiba and South Korea’s Lee keep the hatchet buried?

The South Korean leader's unprecedented visit Saturday will highlight to what extent he has put his hard-line Japan views in the rearview mirror.
Nikko Asset Management is ditching its bearish view on the yen, and now has a ¥135 target against the dollar by year-end.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 20, 2023

Nikko Asset shifts to bullish yen slant as Ueda bides his time

The shift in his view highlights potential upside for the yen, where inflation-adjusted interest rates have exacerbated its decline to multidecade lows.
Mizuho Financial Group has become the third Japanese megabank to sell Additional Tier 1 bonds after the collapse of Credit Suisse set off a global fire sale.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 20, 2023

Mizuho sells ¥261 billion of AT1 bonds after Credit Suisse turmoil

The lender joined Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group in issuing AT1 bonds this year, while the market in Europe is only just reopening.
A menstrual product dispenser installed in a restroom at the Osaka Healthcare Pavilion during the Osaka Expo.
JAPAN
Aug 21, 2025

Free menstrual products made available in restrooms at Osaka Expo

The effort is part of an Osaka University initiative that aims to address period poverty and raise public awareness.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 20, 2023

Mother in Osaka arrested for starving daughter and claiming insurance money

Investigators believe Kasumi Nawata regularly starved her daughter, hospitalizing her 43 times for a total of 332 days since spring 2018.
The U.S. military's Marine Air Defense Integrated System is expected to be deployed in Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture.
JAPAN
Aug 21, 2025

New air defense system to be used in upcoming U.S.-Japan drill

The U.S. military's Marine Air Defense Integrated System is expected to be deployed in Ishigaki, Okinawa Prefecture.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 19, 2023

CDP's Ichiro Ozawa bracing for 'final battle' in next election

The veteran politician still hopes the country will achieve a genuine two-party parliamentary democracy.
Sho Tsuboi said the opportunity to drive a Formula One car at Fuji Speedway was a dream come true.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Aug 21, 2025

Sho Tsuboi realizes ‘dream’ with Haas F1 test at Fuji Speedway

An impressive performance, which also coincides with Toyota’s modest return to F1, could signal the start of something more substantial.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin and Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi pose for a photo during their meeting in Jakarta on Friday.
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2023

U.S., Japan and South Korea condemn North Korean missile launch

The condemnation came after North Korea fired a powerful long-range missile that flew for a record 74 minutes to an altitude of 6,000 kilometers.
McDonald's Japan has canceled its plan to bundle "One Piece" trading cards with its Happy Set meals, after a similar Pokemon-themed campaign sparked a frenzy and uproar over uneaten food being discarded.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 21, 2025

McDonald's Japan to skip 'One Piece' Happy Meal promo

The cancellation follows a similar Pokemon-themed campaign that sparked a frenzy and uproar over uneaten food being discarded.
Jimmy Lai at the Next Digital offices in Hong Kong in 2020. The national security trial of the Hong Kong media mogul, which began in late 2023, entered its final stages on Aug. 14, as lawyers present closing arguments.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 21, 2025

Why Jimmy Lai’s persecution should worry Japan

The trial of 77-year-old publisher is showing how Beijing uses Hong Kong as a laboratory for silencing critics worldwide, from students to exiles.
Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi waits ahead of a high-level meeting with Chinese Communist Party officials at Beijing's Great Hall of the People in December 2017.
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2023

Japan ruling bloc lawmakers facing hurdles to China visit plans

Trips to China by Komeito leader and senior LDP official both put on ice over Chinese anger at planned release of treated Fukushima water.
JAPAN
Jul 14, 2023

Japan calls on China to approach Fukushima water release in 'scientific manner'

The issue of the water release took up a substantive amount of the hourlong talks between the nations' top diplomats, but the two did not come to a clear agreement on the matter.
A commuter uses a portable fan on an underground train at rush hour during a heat wave in the City of London financial district.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Aug 21, 2025

As temperatures soar in London, regulations, not costs, put cooling beyond reach

The British capital has seen a surge in demand for air-conditioning units in high-end homes as climate change raises summer temperatures.
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif attends the ChangeNOW 2025 summit at the Grand Palais in Paris, France on April 25, 2025.
OLYMPICS / Boxing
Aug 21, 2025

Olympic champion Khelif denies 'malicious' claims of retirement

Khelif has not competed since winning Olympic gold in Paris.
Support for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's Cabinet dropped to 30.8% in July, a survey shows.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 13, 2023

Poll shows Kishida Cabinet approval down to 30.8%

The slide in support may have reflected the string of problems related to My Number personal identification cards.
Fever guard Caitlin Clark looks on from the team bench during the first half against the Dallas Wings at the American Airlines Center on Aug. 1.
BASKETBALL
Aug 21, 2025

Injury setback could delay Caitlin Clark's return to Fever

Clark has been sidelined since July 15.
A man stands atop a float holding a portable shrine at this year’s Sanja Festival in Tokyo.
PODCAST / deep dive
Jul 20, 2023

Why 2023 will be a deciding year for Japan’s iconic summer festivals

As the population gets older do we risk losing the summer festivals that make Japan unique?

Longform

Members of the nonprofit group Japan Youth Memorial Association search for the remains of dead soldiers in a cave in Okinawa Prefecture in February.
The long search for Japan’s lost soldiers