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The mascot character of the Osaka Expo promotes the event at Tokyo's Haneda Airport last week.
JAPAN
Jan 13, 2025

Osaka Expo kicks off pavilion reservation lottery amid sales concerns

Winning the lottery guarantees entry to popular pavilions, and this benefit is being promoted to help boost ticket sales, which have struggled to gain momentum.
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.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba poses for a photo with Dimitri Kerkentzes (second left), visiting secretary-general of the Paris-based Bureau International des Expositions, at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN
Jan 18, 2025

Ishiba vows to make Osaka Expo a success

"We will do our best to communicate (the attractions of) not only Osaka but also Japan as a whole to the world," Ishiba also said.
Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama speaks to reporters after meeting with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jan 19, 2025

LDP heavyweight Moriyama boosting profile within party

Moriyama's increased presence within the Ishiba administration has failed to shore up low levels of public support.
Kendrick Lamar performs at the halftime show of Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, Louisiana.
COMMUNITY / Voices / Black Eye
Feb 17, 2025

Black History Month in 2025: The boundaries between 'us' and 'them'

Our columnist reflects on the fraught ideologies of race from both sides of the Pacific.
Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan leader Yoshihiko Noda says that his party aims to revise the budget for fiscal 2025 by a scale of ¥1 trillion ($6.6 billion).
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 18, 2025

CDP may not approve fiscal 2025 draft budget, Noda says

Its approval depends on how far the Liberal Democratic Party-led ruling coalition accepts the opposition party's proposed amendments.
A Delta airlines plane sits on its roof after crashing upon landing at Toronto Pearson Airport in Toronto, Ontario, on Monday.
WORLD
Feb 18, 2025

String of air crashes in 2025 has rattled travelers

The series of plane crashes this year has prompted sharp criticism of American aviation regulators.
Yuko Obuchi, head of the LDP's Party Organization and Campaign Headquarters, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN
Feb 22, 2025

LDP to actively use social media for election victory

Achieving a victory in the election for the upper chamber of the Diet, the country's parliament, is the most important challenge for the party this year.
Hidehiro Asada, the director of Woodcore, shows the firm's laminated wood at its plant in the town of Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, in December.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 26, 2025

Osaka Expo centerpiece a ‘symbol of Fukushima's reconstruction’

Materials for the expo's Grand Ring are being supplied by a wood-processing company in the prefecture, which bore the brunt of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami.
Passengers at a train station in Tokyo. Railway operators plan to expand the scope of chemicals and materials passengers will be banned from bringing onto trains starting in April.
JAPAN
Feb 26, 2025

Railway companies to tighten restrictions on hazardous materials

The move comes as part of a push to bolster security ahead of the 2025 Osaka Expo.
Komeito head Tetsuo Saito speaks at a party meeting in Tokyo on Jan. 28.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 27, 2025

Policy differences push Komeito to tread carefully in LDP coalition

Komeito is likely to emphasize where it stands apart, but it isn't preparing for a breakup with the ruling party.
Hirofumi Yoshimura (center left), president of Nippon Ishin no Kai, at the party's convention in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward on Saturday.
JAPAN
Mar 1, 2025

Nippon Ishin vows to push ruling bloc into minority in Upper House

"I will accept any outcome and take responsibility in the end," Nippon Ishin leader Hirofumi Yoshimura said at a party convention in Tokyo.
A passenger jet with a special livery featuring the popular anime series Gundam is unveiled at Haneda Airport, Tokyo, on Monday ahead of the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 4, 2025

JAL and Bandai Namco unveil Gundam jet ahead of Osaka Expo

The Boeing 737-800 jet, whose livery also features the expo's official mascot, Myaku-Myaku, will be used for domestic flights until around November.
Yuichiro Tamaki, who has been reinstated as leader of the Democratic Party for the People, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 4, 2025

Tamaki sets sights on Upper House election after retaking DPP reins

The opposition party aims to increase its seat count in the upper chamber of parliament from 12 to 21.
The Osaka Expo site on Yumeshima island in December.
JAPAN
Mar 11, 2025

Osaka Expo-linked spending expected to hit ¥1 trillion

The estimated spending related to the expo was based on the assumption that 28 million people will visit the event through October.
Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko observes the 2025 World Exposition venue from the top of a ring-shaped roof called the Grand Ring, the world's largest wooden structure and a symbol for the Expo, on Wednesday in Osaka's Konohana Ward.
JAPAN
Mar 13, 2025

Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko visit Osaka Expo venue

The Crown Prince serves as honorary president of the Expo, which will be held in the city for six months from April 13.
According to changes made to Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings' business plan, approved by the government on Monday, the restart of the reactor at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture is expected to boost its earnings by around ¥100 billion per year.
JAPAN
Mar 17, 2025

Tepco aims to restart Niigata reactor in fiscal 2025

The restart of the reactor is expected to boost power utility' earnings by around ¥100 billion ($672 million) per year.
JNTO Delhi office head Ryo Bunno (fourth from left), exchanges views with major local travel agencies at a travel trade show held in Mumbai on Jan. 30.
JAPAN
Mar 21, 2025

India to showcase space prowess at Osaka Expo

Some Indian officials say Japan isn’t doing enough to drum up excitement for the expo.
Osaka Gov. Hirofumi Yoshimura experiences an evolved version of the "human washing machine" during a media preview of the Osaka Expo's Healthcare Pavilion on Sunday.
JAPAN
Mar 25, 2025

Expo Healthcare Pavilion displays iPS tech and 'human washing machine'

A preview ceremony was held Sunday for the Osaka Healthcare Pavilion to be run by the prefecture and city of Osaka at the 2025 World Exposition, which begins next month in the city.
Former Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa says women should collaborate with one another more to boost growth and creativity.
JAPAN
Mar 25, 2025

Osaka Expo to highlight women's empowerment

The Women's Pavilion, which French luxury brand Cartier and the Cabinet Office will operate, will showcase female social advancement in Japan.
An illustration shows avatars that will be created at the Osaka Healthcare Pavilion of the Osaka Expo.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2025

Errors found in Osaka Expo pavilion's privacy policy

The operator of the Osaka Healthcare Pavilion and a sponsor company are considering whether to correct a discrepancy relating to the handling of visitors' personal information.
A mars rock is packed before transport from the National Institute of Polar Research in Tokyo to Osaka, where it will be displayed at the 2025 World Exposition, on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 2025

Mars rock transported from Tokyo for Osaka Expo

The rock will be shown at the government's Japan Pavilion at the expo.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in the Upper House of the Diet on Friday. The clock is ticking for Ishiba's administration to get the budget for fiscal 2025 passed in parliament.
JAPAN / Politics / EXPLAINER
Mar 28, 2025

Is it a big problem if the budget fails to clear parliament by the end of March?

Government functions won't be significantly hindered, but the Ishiba administration's reputation will take another beating.
The Upper House passes a revised budget bill for fiscal 2025 on Monday, before sending it back to the Lower House for approval.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 31, 2025

Japan's fiscal 2025 budget enacted just in time

The budget bill, which calls for general account spending of ¥115 trillion, was enacted in time for the start of the next fiscal year on Tuesday.
Pix (left), the mascot of the U.K. Pavilion at the 2025 World Expo in Osaka, is seen alongside the event's official mascot, Myaku-Myaku, on Jan. 16 in the city of Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture
JAPAN / Society
Apr 4, 2025

Countries' mascots beat drum for Osaka Expo

Participating nations are taking on Japan's love of mascots by coming up with characters of their own, some of which incorporate the culture of the host country.
A large statue of Osaka Expo mascot Myaku Myaku sits near the east entrance of the event's venue in Yumeshima island, Osaka, on Wednesday.
JAPAN
Apr 9, 2025

After a tumultuous buildup, a first look at the Osaka Expo

Members of the media and other invited guests got a glimpse of the event's shiny pavilions spread over 155 hectares, and the signature Grand Ring overlooking them.
Signs advertising the upcoming World Expo in Osaka have proliferated in the city's different neighborhood for the past few years.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 11, 2025

I’ve only just come back from Osaka, but I’m ready to hit the Expo

The term “bakari” can be used in several different ways to emphasize and define the limit of a range.
The opening ceremony for the Osaka Expo on Saturday.
JAPAN
Apr 12, 2025

Ishiba warns of divided world at futuristic Osaka Expo opening ceremony

"Having overcome the COVID-19 pandemic, the world now faces the crisis over many different divisions," Ishiba told the opening ceremony.
Ride-sharing vehicles in Kiryu, Gunma Prefecture, in March
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Apr 15, 2025

One year in, ride-hailing in Japan has room for improvement

Japan has lagged in adopting ride-hailing services, largely due to opposition from the country's powerful taxi industry.
Emperor Naruhito speaks during the opening ceremony of the 2025 Osaka Expo on Saturday.
JAPAN
Apr 15, 2025

Emperor meets with Turkmenistan president

The meeting followed the president's attendance in Turkmenistan's national day event Monday at the 2025 World Expo in Osaka.

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