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Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 3, 2021

From Nigeria to Brazil 'halo' crops reap pandemic profits

Increasingly health conscious consumers have given an already buoyant global spice market a further boost during the pandemic, heightening investor interest in the sector.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 3, 2021

‘Hokusai’: A force of nature brought to life

In Hajime Hashimoto's sprawling biopic of Japan's most famous painter, Yuya Yagira plays a young Hokusai while Min Tanaka delivers a vibrant performance as the artist in his later years.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 3, 2021

‘Brothers in Brothel’: Come for the sex, stay for the family drama

Sex is a dirty family business in actor-turned-director Jiro Sato's vivid drama.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jun 3, 2021

A take on ‘The Tempest’ that aims to broaden your horizons

“The Tempest: Swimming for Beginners” incorporates the real-life experiences of its cast members with disabilities, as well as the challenges of living through a pandemic.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Jun 3, 2021

New NASA missions will study Venus, a world overlooked for decades

After numerous missions by the United States and the Soviet Union to explore it in the 1970s, '80s and '90s, attention shifted elsewhere.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 3, 2021

Revival of lab leak theory risks making U.S.-China relations worse

The probe comes at a sensitive time in U.S.-China relations, with both governments showing signs they want to move beyond the vitriol of Donald Trump's presidency.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 2, 2021

Prosecute the populists?

Until the cease-fire, the world’s attention was trained on Israel’s airstrikes on Gaza, which may have suited Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, who is facing trial on corruption charges. And Netanyahu is hardly the only populist leader in legal peril.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 2, 2021

Did China avoid blame for causing the pandemic?

The WHO first learned of the COVID-19 outbreak from Taiwan, news articles, a public bulletin and from an automated alert system that scans the internet for mentions of unexplained pneumonia.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 2, 2021

Cautious China keeps borders shut despite mass vaccination drive

Despite only one COVID-19 fatality in the last 13 months and growing protection from inoculations, top officials maintain aggressive rhetoric when talking about the virus' risks.
BUSINESS
Jun 2, 2021

As unpredictable Olympics loom, Japan's sponsors struggle to adapt

More than 60 Japanese companies together paid a record of more than $3 billion to sponsor the Tokyo Games, an event most Japanese now want canceled or delayed again.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Jun 2, 2021

Organ transplants force patients to amass vaccinations to beat COVID-19

Research is showing that these patients are dramatically less likely to develop protective antibodies using the authorized vaccine dosage.
Koichiro Ito, a producer of the hit Japanese anime film "Your Name," has been convicted of "violating laws on child prostitution and pornography" as well as non-consensual sex and the filming of indecent images, a Wakayama District Court spokesperson said on Monday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 3, 2025

'Your Name.' anime producer jailed over obscene acts against minors

Koichiro Ito was reportedly accused of paying a 15-year-old girl money in return for sex, and demanding that another teenager take and send him explicit photos of herself.
Firefighters work to extinguish the forest fire in the city of Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, in this screenshot of a video footage from the Fire and Disaster Management Agency on Friday.
JAPAN / Science & Health / EXPLAINER
Mar 3, 2025

Why the latest Iwate wildfire is so difficult to extinguish

The unusually dry weather, strong winds, the prefecture's mountainous terrain — as well as what's known as a fire cycle — have made the situation worse than usual.
Prince Hisahito attends his first news conference at Akasaka Estate in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2025

At first news conference, Prince Hisahito pledges to fulfill royal duties

The prince, who is second in line to the throne, underlined the importance of thinking of the people as a member of the imperial family.
The Maritime Self-Defense Force's destroyer Akizuki (far left) leads the MSDF fleet during a naval review in Sagami Bay, south of Tokyo, in October 2012.
JAPAN
Mar 3, 2025

Japanese destroyer passes through Taiwan Strait for just second time

The solo passage last month by the Maritime Self-Defense Force's Akizuki comes amid warming ties with Beijing, but also follows ramped-up military pressure by China.
Trucks wait in line to cross into the United States near the border customs control at the World Trade Bridge, in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, last November.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 4, 2025

Trade wars intensify as U.S. tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China take force

Beijing condemned the move and swiftly retaliated, saying it would impose 10% and 15% levies on a range of agricultural imports from the United States.
U.S. President Donald Trump, and C.C. Wei, chief executive officer of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., announce investments in the United States, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington on Monday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 4, 2025

TSMC announces $100 billion investment in new U.S. chip plants

The announcement comes amid concerns Taiwan could lose its "silicon shield" against a Chinese invasion if its companies build too many factories overseas.
Kumi Takiuchi plays a prostitute talking about her life’s pains and pleasures in detail to a psychiatrist in “Reveal.”
CULTURE / Film
Mar 4, 2025

‘Reveal’: Kumi Takiuchi’s performance stuns in one-woman film

Kazuyoshi Okuyama’s powerful drama about a sex worker baring her soul features its lead actor emoting nearly nonstop with no cuts.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 4, 2025

Trump says Ukraine deal still possible despite Zelenskyy feud

Trump’s relatively optimistic assessment could revive prospects for a deal that appeared to be scrapped last week to give the U.S. revenue from Ukraine’s minerals.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 4, 2025

Trump pauses military aid to Ukraine after clash with Zelenskyy

The pause will last until the U.S. president determines the country’s leaders demonstrate a good-faith commitment to peace, a senior defense official said.
The figure skater Maxim Naumov, who lost his parents when an army helicopter collided with a passenger jet above the Potomac River, drops to his knees in tears on the ice at the Legacy on Ice tribute in Washington on Saturday.
MORE SPORTS / Figure skating
Mar 4, 2025

Figure skating stars pay an emotional tribute to the Washington plane crash victims

Dozens of stars from the sport, going back decades, attended the benefit.
The Seven & I takeover saga is being closely watched as a test case of Japan’s openness to foreign capital, after recent governance reforms banned corporations from ignoring overtures that may raise value for shareholders.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 4, 2025

Seven & I shares fall amid report it may reject buyout offer

The company said it is still having constructive discussions with Couche-Tard after a report said it would reject the offer.
Houston Dash player Yuki Nagasato greets fans after a match against Seattle Reign FC at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston on Sept. 21, 2024.
SOCCER
Mar 4, 2025

Houston Dash forward Yuki Nagasato retires after storied career

The 37-year-old appeared in 134 National Women's Soccer League matches, recording 23 goals and 25 assists.
Yarn shortages are a sign that hobbies like knitting and crochet are gaining in popularity.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Mar 4, 2025

‘Granny hobbies’ are the new self-care

Pastimes long associated with Japanese grandparents are booming on social media as young people look for new (old) ways to relax.
Spain's Carlos Alcaraz in action during his Qatar Open round of 16 match against Italy's Luca Nardi in Doha, Qatar, on Feb. 19
TENNIS
Mar 4, 2025

Alcaraz guns for Indian Wells three-peat as Sinner serves ban

Poland's Iga Swiatek, meanwhile, will look to become the only woman to win the tournament three times.
Mourners react during the funeral of two Palestinians killed by Israeli fire in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday.
WORLD
Mar 4, 2025

Israeli fire kills two Palestinians in Gaza amid impasse over ceasefire

A first phase of a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas ended over the weekend with no agreement on what will happen next.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’