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Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s JASM plant in Kikuyo, Kumamoto Prefecture, on Sept. 13
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 11, 2024

Japan unveils ¥10 trillion plan to aid domestic chip industry

The plan, which will provide the support by fiscal 2030, comes as countries look to strengthen control over their chip supply chains.
Seven & I Holdings has closed its convenience stores in Israel.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 13, 2024

Seven & I closes all eight convenience stores in Israel

Seven & I opened its first convenience store in Israel in January last year.
Jensen Huang (left), co-founder and CEO of Nvidia, and Masayoshi Son, chairman and CEO of SoftBank Group, during a fireside chat at the Nvidia AI Summit Japan on Wednesday
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 13, 2024

SoftBank plans first supercomputer with Nvidia Blackwell chips

Nvidia’s chips have become a prized commodity for the world’s biggest tech companies, which use the components to develop and run AI models.
Mizuho Financial CEO Masahiro Kihara during a news conference in Tokyo on Nov. 14
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 14, 2024

Japan’s biggest banks raise profit goals, unveil buybacks

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and Mizuho Financial Group now project a combined ¥3.7 trillion ($24 billion) in profit this fiscal year.
The streets of Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, in October show that the city is still struggling from the aftermath of the Jan. 1 earthquake and heavy rain in September.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Nov 15, 2024

Japan faces urgent need to boost state finances for emergencies

If a major earthquake were to strike directly beneath Tokyo, the projected damage would total around ¥107.5 trillion.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping reviews an honor guard upon his arrival for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Callao, Peru, on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 16, 2024

Xi seizes role as global defender of free trade against Trump

China’s leader warned on Friday that the global economy was fracturing as protectionism spreads, leading to "severe challenges.”
A screen displays trading information about the shares of Truth Social and Trump Media & Technology Group, outside the Nasdaq Market site in New York on March 26.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 18, 2024

Truth Social and late calls take over economists’ lives under Trump

The end goal for economists is to produce accurate forecasts to help traders, businesses and governments navigate the new chaotic world.
Masahide Endo, chief consultant at Daiwa Institute of Research noted that Alimentation Couche-Tard's bid for Seven & I Holdings had spawned a sense of crisis in other industries over sudden takeover proposals.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 18, 2024

Japanese companies increasingly targeted in foreign M&A bids

The total value of inbound acquisitions from overseas is up about 3.7 times year on year.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda said the timing of the central bank’s next policy adjustment will depend on the economy and prices during a speech in Nagoya on Monday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 18, 2024

Yen weakens after Ueda’s caution on BOJ rate hike hints

The yen weakened as much as 0.5% to ¥155.14 against the dollar as Ueda’s comments proved less hawkish than some market participants had expected.
A Sardinian miner helmet, painted with the logo of Sardinia region, in Carbonia, west of Cagliari, Italy. Sardinia relies largely on coal for its electricity.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 18, 2024

Locals revolt against renewables in Italy's coal-fired island, Sardinia

The island a prime location for wind and solar power but intense investor interest has spooked locals who say Sardinia is being exploited.
Sam Altman, CEO of ChatGPT maker OpenAI, joins a growing list of former tech leaders taking roles in San Francisco's government.
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 19, 2024

San Francisco taps OpenAI's Sam Altman for leadership role

The head of the artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT was named by San Francisco Mayor-elect Daniel Lurie as one of seven co-chairs of his transition team.
A view inside Beijing Daxing International Airport. Japanese nationals could soon visit China without a visa for up to 15 days, according to reports.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 19, 2024

China may soon resume visa exemptions for Japanese nationals, reports say

The news comes as the two countries work toward mending fences after a period of tension and in the face of rising protectionist threats.
Kazuto Oku in Tokyo on Tuesday
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 19, 2024

Norinchukin loss to exceed $9.7 billion as bank dumps foreign bonds

Traders and investors are closely watching how Norinchukin plans to reallocate its $304 billion investment portfolio.
Japan's exports rebounded in October, led by a pickup in chip equipment demand in China.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 20, 2024

Japan’s exports grow, helped by China even as global risks rise

Exports rose 3.1% from a year ago, led by strong growth in shipments of chip-making equipment, especially sales to China.
Pudong's Lujiazui Financial District in Shanghai, China
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 20, 2024

Japanese businesses grow more pessimistic on China’s economy

About 64% of Japanese companies said the Chinese economy is faring worse than last year.
Nissan has warned that missing a British government target on electric vehicles would lead to significant fines for manufacturers.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 21, 2024

Nissan urges U.K. to ease EV targets amid weak demand

A British mandate requires at least 22% of an automaker's new car sales in 2024 to be purely EVs, or they face hefty fines.
Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 22, 2024

Nissan’s overly ambitious goals fuel investor and supplier distrust

Nissan’s latest outlook downgrade has shined a light on the Japanese carmaker’s tendency to overpromise and underdeliver.
The private equity landscape is rapidly changing in Japan, where more than $12 billion in such transactions have been announced this year, after reaching a record in 2023.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 22, 2024

KKR-Bain brawl worth $4 billion highlights Japan private equity boom

The saga shows how fast the private equity landscape is changing in Japan, where more than $12 billion in such transactions have been announced this year.
The Northvolt facility in Skelleftea, Sweden.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 23, 2024

Northvolt crisis may be make or break for Europe's EV battery ambitions

Europe's biggest hope for an electric vehicle battery champion filed for bankruptcy protection on Thursday after talks for funding failed.
Fujikura's headquarters in Tokyo's Koto Ward. The company's share price has surged by more than 400% this year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 25, 2024

AI boom makes 139-year-old cable maker Japan’s hottest stock

Fujikura, which makes narrow wire cabling, is the best performer on the Nikkei stock index this year due to a boom in demand for data centers.
Amazon Japan allegedly pressured sellers to lower prices of their products in exchange for advantageous placement on their “Buy Box” system, which highlights one seller’s product as the preferred choice on a product page.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 26, 2024

Antitrust watchdog raids Amazon Japan over alleged price-fixing

The investigation is focused on potential breaches of antitrust laws, including abuse of a superior bargaining position and restrictive trading practices.
Scale is becoming important even for distributors like Macnica Holdings, which sells chips made by the likes of Intel’s Altera.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 27, 2024

Japan’s top chip distributor eyes acquisitions in China and India

Macnica Holdings is eyeing an overseas acquisition to better hold its own against bigger competitors.
An Iranian woman, in her house in Tehran while the electricity is cut off due to energy savings in 2021
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 27, 2024

Iran's businesses bear brunt of daily power blackouts

Iran, despite holding some of the world's largest natural gas and oil reserves, has grappled with massive energy shortages in recent months.
Employees work on assembling vehicles at a SAIC Volkswagen plant in Urumqi, in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, in September 2018.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 27, 2024

VW confirms plans to exit controversial Xinjiang operation

The decision to free itself from the plant comes as the firm is battling to boost flagging sales in China.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is examining allegations that Microsoft is potentially abusing its market power in productivity software, sources have said.
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 28, 2024

Microsoft faces wide-ranging U.S. antitrust probe

The FTC is examining allegations the software giant is potentially abusing its market power in productivity software, sources have said.
SoftBank Group will make a tender offer allowing OpenAI employees to cash in shares if they choose.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 28, 2024

SoftBank seeks to buy $1.5 billion OpenAI shares from employees

SoftBank will make a tender offer for the stock, allowing OpenAI employees to cash in shares if they choose.
In the United States, Temu has bid on keywords including "Walmart Black Friday deals," "Kohls Black Friday," and "Bed Bath Beyond." Shein has bid on keywords including "Walmart clothes," "Zara jeans," and "Mango dresses."
BUSINESS / Tech
Nov 28, 2024

Online marketing costs jump amid bidding war by Temu and Shein

Both platforms' aggressive bids on search keywords used by competitors make it more costly for other retailers and brands to reach shoppers on Black Friday.
The industry ministry plans to provide aid of up to ¥70.5 billion to auto parts maker Denso and Fuji Electric for the joint production of power semiconductors.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 29, 2024

Denso and Fuji Electric to get government aid for power chips

Although Japanese companies have a large share of the global power semiconductor market, production volume per maker is smaller compared with European and U.S. peers.
In an interview in Tokyo with the BBC that was published on Thursday, Fast Retailing CEO Tadashi Yanai said the company does not source cotton from China's Xinjiang region.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 29, 2024

Uniqlo criticized in China after CEO says retailer does not use Xinjiang cotton

Tadashi Yanai, the CEO of Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing, said it does not source cotton from the region, which has faced allegations of forced labor.
A sign at the entrance to the Vauxhall van factory in Luton, England, on Nov. 27. Stellantis plans to close the factory, and has made efforts to pin the blame on the government's mandate for more electric vehicle sales.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 2, 2024

The EV transition is leaving the U.K. auto industry behind

The country wants to be a leader in EVs but has lagged others in establishing the necessary plants and battery factories.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years