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In only two days, more than 700,000 new users joined Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, a person close to the company said.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 15, 2025

Over half a million ‘TikTok refugees’ flock to China's RedNote app

In only two days, more than 700,000 new users have reportedly joined Xiaohongshu, a popular networking app known for lifestyle content and product recommendations.
Lawson and FamilyMart enjoyed net profit increases in the March-November 2024 period, while Seven & I Holdings suffered a sharp deterioration in its bottom line, according to their latest earnings reports.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 16, 2025

Lawson and FamilyMart enjoy net profit growth in March-November

FamilyMart's net profit went up 62.4% to ¥80 billion because of special profit from a realignment of Chinese operations.
A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket streaks into orbit after launching from the Kennedy Space Center on its maiden flight, at Cape Canaveral, Florida on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 16, 2025

Blue Origin rocket lifts off in major test in SpaceX rivalry

The firm's new flagship rocket thundered off the launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida at 2:03 a.m. local time on Thursday.
The U.S. Supreme Court has signaled it's likely to uphold a law that would ban TikTok in the U.S. if it isn't sold by its Chinese parent company by Jan. 19. U.S. politicians in both major parties, however, are seeking ways to keep the video-sharing app accessible for Americans.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 16, 2025

TikTok allies close to Trump and Biden race to delay ban

The app, owned by China’s ByteDance Ltd., faces a deadline of Jan. 19 to find a U.S. buyer in order to continue operating in the country.
Nintendo said it will reveal its next-generation Switch 2 on April 2, setting in motion the retirement of the nearly eight-year-old flagship model.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 17, 2025

Nintendo hopes to reprise blockbuster Switch with 2025 successor

It will host several "Nintendo Switch 2 Experience" events in major cities around the world from April 4 to give gamers an opportunity to test the new console.
A message welcoming users back and thanking U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is displayed on the TikTok app on a smartphone Sunday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 20, 2025

TikTok restoring U.S. service after Trump says he will stall ban

Trump said he would "extend the period of time before the law's prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security."
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg
BUSINESS
Jan 20, 2025

Meta's move to halt fact-checking program in U.S. prompts concern

Instead of using trusted media organizations to fact-check, Meta plans to use "community notes" to check content.
A cartoon image of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump holding a Bitcoin token to mark the cryptocurrency reaching over $100,000 is displayed at a Coinhero store in Hong Kong on Dec. 5.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 20, 2025

Trump’s win sparked euphoria in markets — now comes the real test

A reversal was first apparent in the stock market, where the S&P 500 Index gave back a solid chunk of its "Trump bump.”
A Donald Trump 2024 campaign hat on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York on Tuesday
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 22, 2025

Markets braced for uncertainty as Trump holds back from pledged tariffs

Chinese markets were relieved after Beijing avoided an instant blizzard of executive orders, but Mexico's peso and Canada's dollar weren't so lucky.
Tokyo Gas President Shinichi Sasayama speaks during an interview at the company's headquarters in Tokyo on Jan. 16.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 22, 2025

Tokyo Gas focusing on more U.S. investment opportunities

"Among our overseas businesses, North America is an especially important growth market for us,” said President Shinichi Sasayama.
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks on Stargate, as Oracle Executive Chairman Larry Ellison, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman look on in the Roosevelt room at the White House.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 22, 2025

SoftBank to help fund and lead Trump-backed Stargate AI project, a $500 billion venture

The president said it will be the largest AI infrastructure ever built and that it will help counter technology threats from China and other countries.
Investment trusts that cater to Japanese individuals bought a net ¥10.4 trillion of overseas equities and funds last year after the government expanded the scope of the Nippon Individual Savings Account system.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 23, 2025

Japan’s love of foreign stocks risks pushing the yen even lower

Investment trusts that cater to Japanese individuals bought a net ¥10.4 trillion of overseas equities and funds last year.
A television screen displays a news report on South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, inside a restaurant in Seoul on Dec. 28. 2024
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 23, 2025

South Korea’s economy struggles to grow amid political crisis

The anemic quarterly growth figure points to an economy already in a weakened state, with the prospect of tariffs clouding the outlook for exports, a key engine of growth.
A business district in Tokyo. Japan plans to strengthen pre-screening measures for overseas investors that could potentially cooperate with foreign intelligence gathering efforts, addressing rising national security concerns.
BUSINESS
Jan 23, 2025

Japan to tighten investment pre-screening amid security concerns

While the updated regulations will impose an additional step for a broader range of investors, those who pass the screening can still invest in Japanese companies.
Fuji TV's headquarters in Tokyo on Thursday
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 24, 2025

Scandal-hit Fuji Media stock trading soars 1,767% on shakeup bet

A total of 237.8 million shares changed hands in Tokyo, compared with 12.74 million last week.
U.S. President Donald Trump is seen on a giant screen during his address by video conference at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 25, 2025

Trump spurs surprise world rally in first week on trade respite

U.S. President Donald Trump's decision not to immediately slap tariffs on U.S. trade partners triggered the surprising market response.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda explains the central bank's decision on its interest rate hike during a news conference after a policy meeting on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Jan 27, 2025

BOJ may revert to fuzzy communication after Fed-style rates clarity

The BOJ fumbled its communication in December, surprising investors, but then telegraphed Friday's increase so unambiguously that the rate hike was 90% priced in.
Spotify signage on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Jan. 2
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 27, 2025

Universal and Spotify ink multiyear deal

A joint statement said the two firms "will collaborate closely to advance the next era of streaming innovation."
Nippon Life Insurance will establish a new headquarters division in late March to manage its foreign businesses, and its overseas insurance and asset management departments will be absorbed into that organization, people familiar with the matter have said.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 27, 2025

Nippon Life to revamp overseas business operations after acquisitions

Japan’s biggest life insurer will establish a new headquarters division in late March to manage its foreign businesses, and absorb related departments into that organization.
Nissan’s latest crisis surfaced in November when it reported a 94% drop in first-half net income.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 27, 2025

Nissan eyes cuts without resorting to plant closures, sources say

The carmaker will focus on reducing and consolidating existing production lines both in Japan and overseas to cut costs.
A solar farm in Lennon, Michigan, in 2021. In an executive order, President Donald Trump pointedly excluded green technology like solar panels from his definition of energy.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 28, 2025

Citi analysts say Trump can’t reverse energy transition

Despite the Trump administration’s determination to shred Biden-era climate protections, there remains a "sense of optimism” that the energy transition will prevail.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a House Republican members conference meeting at Trump National Doral resort in Miami on Monday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 28, 2025

Trump pledges tariffs ‘much bigger’ than 2.5% and on key sectors

The American president's remarks were the latest in a string of major signals that he’s preparing widespread levies to reshape U.S. supply chains.
Japan has lagged far behind other advanced economies on lists of female representation in positions of authority, and ranks 118th among 146 nations in the World Economic Forum’s gender equity rankings.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 28, 2025

JPMorgan AM Japan appoints Komatsu as first female CEO

Japan has lagged far behind other advanced economies on lists of female representation in positions of authority.
U.S. President Donald Trump said last week that he was in talks with multiple people over buying TikTok and would likely have a decision on the popular app's future in 30 days.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 28, 2025

Trump says Microsoft is in talks to acquire TikTok

Microsoft emerged as a top bidder in 2020, but the talks soon collapsed, and a divestment push by Trump ended a few months later when his first term ended.
Taxis in central Sendai. More people are becoming attracted to the job of a taxi driver as it can allow them to work flexibly.
BUSINESS / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Feb 10, 2025

Cab driving becoming an increasingly popular job in Sendai

Flexible hours and the work-at-your-own-pace environment has led to a renewed interest in taxi driving among younger people.
Many workers at small companies continue to fall behind as wages fail to keep up with inflation.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 29, 2025

Smaller Japanese companies unlikely to meet wage-increase target for 2025

For this year’s spring negotiations, the Japanese Trade Union Confederation set hike targets of more than 6% for smaller firms.
Chinese artificial intelligence app DeepSeek rocked the tech sector this month with a new AI model that appeared to rival the capabilities of U.S. giants like OpenAI, but at 
a much lower cost.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 30, 2025

Why blocking China's DeepSeek from using AI made in U.S. may be difficult

DeepSeek this month rocked the technology sector with a new AI model that appeared to rival the capabilities of U.S. giants like OpenAI, but at a much lower cost.
"As main shareholder of Nissan, Renault will consider all options based on the best interest of the group and its shareholders,” said a spokesperson for Renault, regarding a merger of Nissan and Honda.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 30, 2025

Renault seeks takeover premium from Honda for Nissan stake

Representatives for Renault flew to Japan earlier this week to voice concerns over how a tie-up may be structured, sources said.
Japanese banks are enjoying bumper earnings as they begin to benefit from rising interest rates following more than a decade of ultraeasy monetary policy.
BUSINESS
Jan 30, 2025

Sumitomo Mitsui profit beats estimates as rate hikes bolster earnings

Net income at Japan’s second-largest bank rose 54% from a year earlier to ¥410.8 billion for the three months ended Dec. 31, calculations show.
Takeda Pharmaceutical's headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 30, 2025

Takeda picks first female CEO of centuries-old drugmaker

Julie Kim, 54, has been running Takeda’s U.S. operations since 2022 and will assume the role of CEO in June next year, subject to shareholder approval, the company said.

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A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami