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BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

Manufacturer overtime decreased 8.5% last year

Overtime in the domestic manufacturing sector fell 8.5 percent from the previous year to an average of 12.6 hours a month in 2001, according to a government survey released Thursday.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2002

Ogata gets government call

The government hopes Sadako Ogata, former United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, will become the new foreign minister, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda indicated Thursday, adding that the post Makiko Tanaka was fired from should be filled by today.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

WTO gets call on U.S. steel curbs

Japan has filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization over a U.S. antidumping measure against Japanese surface-treated steel sheet exports, and asked Washington to hold talks on the issue under WTO auspices, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2002

Snow exec implicated in fraud he investigated

A Snow Brand Food Co. division chief assigned to investigate allegations of false labeling of meat to get state subsidies by its Kansai Meat Center was directly involved in the fraud he was to probe, sources said Thursday.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2002

Union Jichiro mulls way to remove scandal taint

Jichiro, the All-Japan Prefectural and Municipal Workers' Union, opened a two-day special convention Thursday in Tokyo to discuss how to rebuild the organization in the wake of a tax evasion scandal involving former executives and the revelation of massive off-the-book debts.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

Dollar poised to give back recent gains

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan sounded a somewhat optimistic note on economic prospects last week.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

NEC to slash 14,000 workers worldwide before March 31

Computer maker NEC Corp. said Thursday that it will reduce its global workforce by 9.3 percent, or 14,000 jobs, by the end of March, doubling the number of jobs to be slashed from the figure it announced in late October.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

Nippon Shinpan's board OKs asset sales

Nippon Shinpan Co. said Thursday its board has approved a basic agreement with a Japanese investment fund over the sale of a majority equity stake in Kokunai Shinpan Co., one of its consumer credit arms.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

Nikko Cordial suffers in April-December period

Nikko Cordial Corp. said Thursday it fell into the red in the April-December period as an extended slump in the domestic stock market cut into key revenue sources, such as brokerage commissions and underwriting fees.
MORE SPORTS
Feb 1, 2002

Anna's pal Rios just 'having a little fun'

Much has been written on these pages over the past few days about the comments by Marcelo Rios regarding the current state of women's tennis. Rios, the former No. 1-ranked men's player in the world, put himself in the firing line by saying at last week's Australian Open that women's early-round matches...
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2002

Temple U. dean seeking larger enrollment

About 30 American universities established branch schools in Japan during the 1980s and early 1990s, and although many of them have since departed, the new dean of Temple University Japan is seeking to expand enrollment.
JAPAN
Feb 1, 2002

Analysts consider possibility of large-scale crash

Takeshi Kimura, president of consulting firm KPMG Financial Co., says he periodically receives calls from overseas investors who ask one chilling question.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

Kinki tourism firm hit by terror fears

OSAKA -- Kinki Nippon Tourist Co. said Thursday that fiscal second-half sales in western Japan of its Holiday brand overseas package tours are likely to drop 39 percent from a year earlier.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / LEARNING BY HEART
Feb 1, 2002

Kids learn from embracing the differences

The first thing you notice about the students at Musashino Higashi Secondary Vocational School is their uniforms. No matter the subject -- be it gymnastics or computer science -- the learning is done in a light-blue tracksuit.
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Feb 1, 2002

Japanese squirrel

* Japanese name: Nihon risu * Scientific name: Sciurus lis * Description: The Japanese squirrel is an arboreal species, which means it lives in trees. It has a long, bushy tail, large tufted ears and sharp claws. Its fur changes color according to the season. In summer, the fur is red-orange. In winter,...
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

China's IT engineers get smoother visa path

Japanese and Chinese bodies responsible for assessing the qualifications of information technology engineers signed a memorandum of understanding for mutual recognition Thursday in Beijing.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

SESC calls for punishment of Morgan Stanley Japan

The government's stock market watchdog has recommended to the Financial Services Agency that Morgan Stanley Japan Ltd. and two Morgan Stanley traders be punished for illegal stock deals involving short-selling.
EDITORIALS
Jan 31, 2002

Time to get back to business

In an unprecedented development Wednesday, Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka and Vice Foreign Minister Yoshiji Nogami were simultaneously dismissed for their failure to maintain an effective foreign policy team. This is the first time in the history of Japan's parliamentary Cabinet system that the foreign...
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2002

Tokyo impounds relabeled imported beef

Tokyo Metropolitan Government officials on Wednesday impounded about 3.5 tons of imported beef repackaged as domestic and stored at Snow Brand Food Co.'s warehouse in Tokyo's Ota Ward.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2002

Population seen peaking at 127.74 million in '06

Japan's population is expected to fall to about 100.59 million in 2050 after peaking at roughly 127.74 million in 2006 -- a year earlier than in the last report -- according to an estimate released Wednesday by an institute affiliated with the health ministry.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2002

U.S. urged to strengthen intelligence

U.S. author and terrorism expert Martin Keating said Wednesday that the United States must build a stronger human intelligence network after the failure of intelligence-gathering networks in preventing the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the U.S.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2002

NPA warns hooligans in English

The National Police Agency released an English-language message Wednesday to warn foreigners intent on causing trouble at the 2002 World Cup soccer finals cohosted by Japan and South Korea that Japan is ready to deal with them.
COMMENTARY
Jan 31, 2002

Toughest task yet: rebuilding Afghanistan's civil society

HONOLULU -- Two decades of war have exacted a horrific toll on Afghanistan. As the dust settles after the latest conflagration, the meaning of "nation building" is becoming clear -- and it's a mind-boggling assignment.
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2002

Arabian Oil to integrate with refiner

Arabian Oil Co. and Fuji Oil Co. said Wednesday they have agreed to integrate operations under a joint holding company to be set up next January.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jan 31, 2002

Backhand compliment earns volley

The most significant volley that Marcelo Rios had to face at this year's Australian Open was the volley of abuse he received from female professionals after describing the women's game as a "joke."
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2002

Slump shows no indication of letting up

Decelerating business activity and deteriorating employment conditions show no signs of abating, the Finance Ministry said in a report Wednesday.

Longform

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past