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BUSINESS
Apr 24, 2001

Reorganization of Kyoei Life now complete

The Tokyo District Court on Monday ended reorganization proceedings for failed mid-tier life insurer Kyoei Life Insurance Co., renamed Gibraltar Life Insurance Co. at the beginning of this month.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Koizumi vows to destroy forces blocking reforms

Garnering a whopping 87 percent of the local vote in the LDP's presidential primaries, maverick reformer Junichiro Koizumi on Monday vowed to "destroy" forces standing against his reform agenda and launch a Cabinet free of the party's factional shackles.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Tsushima coast guard on alert

TSUSHIMA, Nagasaki Pref. -- A small fishing boat from South Korea sat tied to a Japan Coast Guard patrol boat last week at Izuhara port in the Tsushima Islands.
BUSINESS
Apr 24, 2001

Nifco buys four firms off Acriplas Group of Spain

Major plastics parts maker Nifco Inc. said Monday it has bought four companies of the Acriplas Group, a plastic parts group in Spain.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

China halts visits over Lee's trip to Japan

China has decided to suspend visits to Japan by its senior officials for the time being to protest former Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui's visit to Japan that began Sunday, a Beijing-based Japanese source familiar with bilateral relations said Monday.
BUSINESS
Apr 24, 2001

Japan in quandary over Iran rail project

After several years of warming and rapidly advancing relations, Japan and Iran may be at a crossroads once again.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Tokyo pitches info booklets for foreigners

Tokyo is promoting 135 booklets to help the growing number of foreigners living in the metropolis with topics including AIDS prevention.
BUSINESS
Apr 24, 2001

Appliance output to be cut in wake of law

Major consumer electronics makers plan to cut production of four kinds of electric appliances in the April-June period to counter an expected fall in sales following the April 1 introduction of a new recycling law that temporarily pushed up demand.
BUSINESS
Apr 24, 2001

Consumer confidence falls for second quarter

Consumer confidence took a turn for the worse in March as consumers, including free-spending singles, showed increasing concern about their employment and income prospects over the next six months, two government surveys showed Monday.
BUSINESS
Apr 24, 2001

Necktie maker folds amid import glut

OSAKA -- Apparel wholesaler Asakurashoji Co. has applied for court protection from creditors under a fast-track corporate rehabilitation law, a private research institute said Monday.
BUSINESS
Apr 24, 2001

Markets strike positive note

Financial markets have reacted positively to surprise interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Shigenobu pleads not guilty to terrorism

Japanese Red Army founder Fusako Shigenobu on Monday pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from the 1974 seizure of the French Embassy in The Hague, Netherlands, including charges of injuring local police officers.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Moderate temblor shakes Tottori

A moderate quake of magnitude 3.9 shook Tottori Prefecture and its vicinity Monday afternoon, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Latest threat to G-8: sea sickness

Italy is offering an unspecified number of passenger ships to accommodate world leaders during a forthcoming summit in the port city of Genoa -- as shelter from antiglobalization demonstrators.
SOCCER / J. League / ON THE BALL
Apr 24, 2001

Crisis of confidence grips Marinos

The Yokohama F. Marinos, last year's first-stage champions in the J. League, are struggling -- and struggling badly.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Pianist to play concerts in Eritrea

Japanese jazz pianist Yasuhiro Kono set off Monday for Eritrea to give concerts using seven pianos he recently collected and donated to the war-stricken African country.
LIFE / Travel
Apr 24, 2001

Conserving world heritage in Dunhuang

DUNHUANG, China -- Approaching China across the Eurasian continent, one crosses the Tianshan mountains only to be confronted by the mighty Taklamakan Desert, with its sinister epigraph: "If you go in, you won't come out." At Kashgar, the Silk Road divides into two branches, skirting the northern and...
LIFE / Travel
Apr 24, 2001

A tale of two Thai tribes

BAHN BOON YEUN, Phrae Province, Thailand -- Small, wild-haired figures in ragged clothes move barefoot through the moonlit mango grove. Some carry archaic muskets as long as spears, others squat beside soot-stained shacks murmuring to each other in the darkness. Inside a big wooden house at the heart...
MORE SPORTS / THE DUKE OF HAZARDS
Apr 24, 2001

Baker-Finch happy talking golf -- for now

Ten years ago, Ian Baker-Finch won the British Open. It seems like a long time ago. He no longer plays professional golf.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Mexico keen to boost ties with Japan

The new democratic government of Mexico is eager to strengthen ties with Japan and promote cultural exchanges between the two countries, the Central American country's new ambassador to Japan said Monday.
LIFE / Travel
Apr 24, 2001

Lonesome locomotives left in Lebanon

BEIRUT, Lebanon -- There aren't many obstacles in the way of exploring Lebanon's crumbling train stations. But at St. Michel, once the hub of the nation's now-defunct rail network, a man eyeing my camera says I need permission to look around.
COMMENTARY
Apr 24, 2001

Economy keeps Blair on top

LONDON -- All being well, there will be a general election in Britain on June 7. It is not yet official but it seems almost certain.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Turkey thanked for handling of hostage crisis

Foreign Minister Yohei Kono on Monday afternoon thanked the Turkish government for securing the release of all the hostages detained by a group of gunmen at a hotel in Istanbul, including an unknown number of Japanese.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2001

Food delivery firms beset by slump, glut

Consumer cooperatives and companies delivering food door-to-door face rough going amid prolonged lackluster consumption and fierce distribution competition.

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear