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BUSINESS
May 20, 2005

Economic assessment left intact

The government on Thursday left its overall assessment of the economy unchanged for a fifth straight month, stating that a slight improvement in exports was offset by weaker housing construction.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2005

BOJ expected to keep liquidity target

Despite stronger than expected economic growth in the first quarter of 2005, the Bank of Japan is expected to stick to a monetary-easing framework until it sees more evidence the economy is on route to stable recovery, BOJ watchers said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2005

TSE won't shed regulatory division

The Tokyo Stock Exchange has no intention of spinning off the division that sets rules for listing applications and equities transactions when the bourse becomes a listed company later this year, TSE President Takuo Tsurushima said Tuesday.
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
May 17, 2005

Foreign victims lacking a voice

As a foreigner living in Japan, it's often difficult to blend it with the crowd. While at times this might be fun, at others it can be a catalyst for trouble.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
May 15, 2005

Cannon fodder won the war

MOSCOW -- Writing a book is not unlike planting a garden. You make elaborate plans for each section; you comb encyclopedias and guides for advice; you collect every piece of information about the species that interests you; you say to yourself that, unlike other gardens, yours is going to be consistent,...
COMMUNITY
May 14, 2005

Extraordinary Ainu strut their stuff in Scotland

Val Aldridge is the researcher of the exhibition "The Extraordinary: A People Called Ainu," which opened at Scotland's Perth Museum and Art Gallery in April and will run through to the end of the year. It is hoped that it will generate some interest in July when the Group of Eight summit takes place...
EDITORIALS
May 13, 2005

Revitalizing the startup spirit

Small businesses play an important role in creating jobs and invigorating markets. Since the mid-1990s, however, the number of small-business startups has declined, according to this year's white paper on small and medium-size enterprises. The question is how to reverse the trend. The report calls for...
EDITORIALS
May 11, 2005

Confidence in train safety

The safety of public transport in Japan has been thrown into doubt by the April 25 train derailment in Hyogo Prefecture, which killed 107 people and injured 460, and by a succession of other transport-related incidents that have followed -- including train overruns, a bus accident, errors by air traffic...
EDITORIALS
May 9, 2005

Fishing for sustainable profits

The good news for Japan's fisheries is that some of its products enjoy growing demand abroad, particularly in some parts of Asia. This year's government white paper on fisheries stresses the importance of developing overseas markets and highlights a variety of export-oriented initiatives across the country....
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
May 8, 2005

The urban underclass of a modernist Tokyo

THE SCARLET GANG OF ASAKUSA, by Yasunari Kawabata, translated by Alisa Freedman, foreword and afterword by Donald Richie. Berkeley and Los Angeles: The University of California Press, 2005, 231 pp., $17.95 (paper). "Art is bad," Guy Davenport posited, "when it is poor in news," and it is not surprising...
COMMENTARY
May 8, 2005

A 'Eurasian Union' on deck

LONDON -- Where does Europe end and Asia begin? The question is of more than academic interest because the answer will determine what sort of entity the European Union is to be. There are those who talk about "the final completion" of the EU as though a line can be carefully drawn between the states...
EDITORIALS
May 7, 2005

Roots of corporate value

What makes a good corporation? The answer depends partly on whether it takes a long-term and broad-gauged view of its activities. This may help clarify a question raised during the recent takeover battle for Nippon Broadcasting System: To whom does a corporation belong? The question may also serve as...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
May 7, 2005

Knitting trip around Japan ties up more projects

One Japan-related project attracts attention at "Knit 2 Together: Concepts in Knitting," organized by the U.K.'s Crafts Council and on show in London until May 15, from where it will set out to tour Britain as part of the "Knitting and Stitching Show 2005."
COMMENTARY
May 5, 2005

Britain's apolitical election

LONDON -- So powerful has been Prime Minister Tony Blair's dominance of British politics that Thursday's General Election has resolved into one question: Are you for or against his leadership?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
May 4, 2005

Mad artist myth no longer holds

The name Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) invariably invokes a legend -- the legend of a wild, creative genius, out of sync with the stilted, repressive atmosphere of Victorian Europe; who exploded in passionate art and self-destructive disregard of the banal parameters of everyday life; who followed his...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
May 2, 2005

Wash away city-life stress with the traditional onsen experience

THE JAPANESE SPA: A Guide to Japan's Finest Ryokan and Onsen, by Akihiko Seki and Elizabeth Heilman Brooke. Tokyo: Tuttle, 2005, 175 pp., $26.95 (cloth). Here we discover the art and aesthetics of the Japanese hot spring (onsen) experience. Twenty-eight exquisite inns (ryokan) are featured in some 400...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
May 2, 2005

Memoirs of an activist

RESTLESS WAVE: My Life in Two Worlds, by Ayako Ishigaki. New York: The Feminist Press at the City University of New York, 2004, 286 pp., $16.95 (paper). Those who know something about Ayako Ishigaki (or who have cheated and read the afterword to "Restless Wave" before the text proper) will find the first...
Japan Times
Features
May 1, 2005

Heading for the stars on high

KONA, Hawaii -- The big white 4WD driven by Yasuhiro Nishida left the hotel in Kohala Coast at 2:50 p.m. with 13 people on board. It was another windy afternoon on the west coast of the island of Hawaii -- "the Big Island," as this, the largest and youngest in the Hawaiian chain, is known.
EDITORIALS
Apr 30, 2005

Treaty against nuclear terror

Recently the United Nations unanimously approved a treaty that outlaws the use of nuclear weapons by terrorists and their supporters. Incredibly, such actions were not illegal before. The treaty has been touted -- by the United States, no less -- as an important step in the fight against terrorism and...
JAPAN
Apr 30, 2005

Police launch major probe into Amagasaki train crash

Driver training -- Page 2
BASKETBALL / NBA / NBA REPORT
Apr 29, 2005

NBA labor talks getting bogged down

NEW YORK -- For the first time since dialogue began in earnest a year ago to re-negotiate the NBA's Collective Bargaining Agreement I'm getting negative feedback.
COMMENTARY
Apr 29, 2005

Taiwan opposition tests winds in Beijing

HONG KONG -- Little more than a month after China's passage of its antisecession law, the cross-strait situation has undergone a remarkable change. While there has been some negative fallout, with Taiwan delaying talks on expanding chartered flights between the two sides and banning journalists from...
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 28, 2005

Has China learned a lesson?

It is naturally welcome that Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan and President Hu Jintao of China reaffirmed in Jakarta that friendly Japan-China relations are desirable not only for the two countries but also for Asia at large. It is beyond doubt that good Japan-China relations promote peace and...
BUSINESS
Apr 28, 2005

Nippon Oil to raise gas prices 2.4 yen

The nation's largest oil refiner, Nippon Oil Corp., said Wednesday it will increase the average wholesale price for gasoline and other petroleum goods for May by 2.4 yen per liter to pass on higher crude prices.
BUSINESS
Apr 28, 2005

U.S. team talks up beef to public

A delegation of U.S. agricultural officials and experts met Wednesday with Japanese consumers to explain about American beef and why they want to quickly resume exports to Japan.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 27, 2005

Private rail firms check safety after JR crash

OSAKA-- Kansai's major private train firms said Tuesday they are reviewing safety procedures in the wake of the train crash near Amagasaki in Hyogo Prefecture that killed 73 and injured more than 450.
BUSINESS
Apr 26, 2005

Index, KDDI move to boost mobile content

Index Corp., the leading distributor of content for mobile phones, said Monday it has formed a capital alliance with and will become the largest shareholder of toy maker Takara Co.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji