Search - 2023

 
 
Justice Minister Ryuji Koizumi speaks to reporters in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
May 21, 2024

Japan's revised immigration bill clears Lower House

Permanent residency holders may have their status revoked if they deliberately fail to pay their taxes, impacting only those "with malicious intent."
The entrance to Maruyama Park, one of Sapporo's most popular parks for summer recreation. The Maruyama Park area is part of a designated region where Sapporo plans tougher bear countermeasures, including the possible use of bear traps.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
May 27, 2024

From coexistence to separation: Sapporo's battle with bears

An increasing number of bears in Hokkaido is forcing the prefectural capital to change its strategy for dealing with the animals.
Ecuador has sought funding to fight the effects of climate change, including a June 2023 flood that followed heavy rains in Esmeraldas. So far, the developed world has offered the debt-strapped nation more loans than grants.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
May 23, 2024

Rich nations reap climate finance dividend, benefiting from rates and terms

Developed nations have pledged to send $100 billion a year to poorer countries to aid adaptation, but money from the deals is being funneled back into rich economies.
Complaints regarding overcharging for pest extermination services have been on the rise, especially among young adults, a survey has found.
JAPAN
May 23, 2024

Surge in young Japanese consumers overcharged for pest control services

The National Consumer Affairs Center warns consumers to be wary of suspiciously low-cost pest control services and advertisements found online.
Forever Young (center), ridden by Ryusei Sakai, finished third in this year’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, on May 4.
MORE SPORTS / Horse Racing
May 24, 2024

Solid Kentucky Derby showing offers hope

“The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports” refers to the Kentucky Derby, a 2,000-meter dirt track race for 3-year-old thoroughbreds run at Churchill Downs Racetrack in Louisville, Kentucky. The Kentucky Derby is the first race of the Triple Crown, the second and third being the Preakness and the Belmont...
The health ministry says it will conduct its first survey on how much foreign residents are paying in health insurance and pension premiums.
JAPAN / Society
May 28, 2024

Health ministry to collect data on insurance premium payments by foreign residents

The ministry currently has no data on how much foreign nationals are paying in terms of health insurance payments and pension premiums.
Serbia's Novak Djokovic during his first-round match against France's Pierre-Hugues Herbert at the French Open in Paris on Tuesday
TENNIS
May 29, 2024

Djokovic shrugs off troubles in winning start at French Open

The player has advanced to the French Open quarterfinals or better every year since 2010.
Schoolchildren cross a wooden bridge in Zabul province, Afghanistan on Tuesday.
WORLD
May 29, 2024

Mines and unexploded ordnance a daily menace for Afghanistan's children

Nearly 900 people were killed or wounded by leftover munitions from January 2023 to April this year alone, most of them children, according to UN figures.
U.S. soldiers participate in a joint exercise conducted for South Korean and U.S. soldiers in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi province, South Korea, on March 20.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 31, 2024

China's military drills 'remain underdeveloped' amid regional tensions

Noting the U.S. military may eventually lose its edge over China in the region, a new study says China is challenged by a lack of combat experience.
OpenAI said that a Chinese network known as Spamouflage, which used its models to research social media activities, has been generating articles in various languages that were then posted on social media platforms and forums.
JAPAN / Society
May 31, 2024

Chinese group used OpenAI tech to discredit Fukushima water discharge

OpenAI said that a Chinese network used its models to generate articles in various languages accusing Japan of polluting the waters of the Pacific Ocean.
Serbia's Novak Djokovic plays a backhand return to Italy's Lorenzo Musetti during their French Open men's singles match early Sunday in Paris.
TENNIS
Jun 2, 2024

Djokovic battles back in French Open epic that ends at 3 a.m.

Djokovic came from two sets to one down to defeat Italy's Lorenzo Musetti in a third-round match which ended at 3:07 a.m.
A variety of instant noodle products is sold at Miyagi Co-op Saiwaicho Store in Sendai. The city placed second in household spending for instant noodles in a 2023 nationwide ranking.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Jun 10, 2024

Tohoku's love for instant noodles shines through in survey

The spending for instant noodles in Tohoku cities far exceeds the national average.
Fans cheer after Japan's men's volleyball team qualified for the Paris Olympics on Oct. 7 at Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo.
MORE SPORTS / Volleyball
Jun 4, 2024

Japanese volleyball’s fastest growing fan base — female superfans

More than 80% of the fans at men’s domestic competitions are said to be women in their 20s, 30s and 40s.
"Paris" is projected onto the Arc de Triomphe to celebrate the entry into the Olympic year, during the New Year's celebrations on the Champs Elysees avenue in Paris on Jan. 1, 2024.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 4, 2024

Russian bots use fake Tom Cruise for Olympic disinformation

The video also included falsified endorsements from media outlets including The New York Times and the BBC.
The Two International Finance Center, left, and other buildings in Hong Kong in May 2021
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 5, 2024

Chinese move billions into Hong Kong banks, seeking higher yields

Regulators in Beijing have clamped down on high-yielding wealth management products onshore, while sinking real-estate prices have sapped nest eggs across China.
Al Shifa Hospital after Israeli forces withdrew from the hospital and the area around it following a two-week operation, in Gaza City on April 2
WORLD
Jun 5, 2024

Gaza's doctors were building a health care system. Then came war.

Before the war, specialist doctors were part of a strategic effort by Hamas to build a self-sufficient health care system for Gaza.
Ryu Kawane works at the Costco store in Meiwa, Gunma Prefecture. Costco's high pay has triggered wage hikes at other businesses in town.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 6, 2024

Costco's Japan wages provide pathway to firing up nation's low pay and economy

A sustainable rise in wages is a key goal for Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and the Bank of Japan says it's a crucial factor for normalizing monetary policy.
Tomomi Bitoh, 33, Japan's top ultrarunner, stretches as she takes part in a workout session around the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jun 6, 2024

As Japan's birth rate drops, runner freezes her eggs to sustain motherhood dream

Last year Tokyo authorities started offering subsidies of up to ¥300,000 ($1,900) for women aged between 18 and 39 to have their eggs frozen for future pregnancies.
With a number of elderly people living alone increasing in Japan, the welfare ministry plans to conduct a survey of municipalities' responses to unclaimed bodies and remains.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 9, 2024

Japan to conduct first survey on unclaimed bodies

The number of unclaimed remains stored by municipalities stood at some 60,000 as of October 2021, according to an internal affairs ministry survey released in 2023.
The government is set to start discussing the idea of extending public health insurance coverage to include childbirth from fiscal 2026.
JAPAN
Jun 9, 2024

Japan to discuss public insurance coverage of childbirth

The average of childbirth costs across Japan stood at some ¥482,000 in fiscal 2022.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 10, 2024

Investors brace for volatility as BOJ seeks to cut bond buying

The Bank of Japan bought only ¥4.5 trillion of government bonds last month, the lowest amount since March 2013.
Dutch runner Abdi Nageeye (center) wears a continuous glucose monitor on his upper left arm as he competes in the 2022 Rotterdam marathon in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, in April 2022.
OLYMPICS
Jun 11, 2024

Olympic athletes turn to diabetes tech in pursuit of medals

Continuous glucose monitors were developed for use by diabetes patients but their makers also spy opportunities in sports and wellness.
Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks during Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference in Cupertino, California, on Monday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 11, 2024

Apple's AI push could reinvigorate iPhone sales as customers look to upgrade

Facing choppy consumer spending and resurgent tech rivals, Apple has looked to AI as a way to invigorate its loyal fan base.
Virtu is located on the 39th floor of the Four Seasons Tokyo hotel in the Otemachi neighborhood of Chiyoda Ward.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jun 11, 2024

Virtu brings hospitality award home to the country of ‘omotenashi’

This is the first time a bar in Japan has earned the distinction from the Asia's 50 Best Bars organization since it was first awarded in 2020.
Argentina's Macarena Ceballos in action during the women's 100m breaststroke heats at the Pan-Am Games in Santiago on Oct. 21. The swimmer has struggled to train for the Olympics in the chilly Argentine winter after a pump to heat the pool at her training center broke.
OLYMPICS
Jun 11, 2024

As Olympics loom, Argentine athletes fret over dwindling funds

Some 1,200 high-level Argentine athletes and coaches receive stipends of an average $350 per month.
The Grand Kremlin palace in Moscow
WORLD / Politics
Jun 12, 2024

How a Russian operative worked to shape Moscow’s story in Europe

The operative has contacted at least six European journalists and at times appears to have offered to pay for planted news articles.
The share of women in legislative, senior official and management roles increased by 1.7 percentage points from 2023 and 4.6 percentage points from 2006, according to a World Economic Forum gender equality report.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 12, 2024

Japan makes gains in political empowerment in gender equality report

Overall, Japan ranked 118th out of 146 countries in the World Economic Forum report, making it the lowest-ranked G7 nation.
The rates of unmarried Japanese have been rising across every age group. More than 90% of women age 30-34 were married in 1980, versus 65% now.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 11, 2024

Tokyo government's 'Tinder' is actually a good idea

The rates of unmarried Japanese have been rising across every age group. More than 90% of women aged 30-34 were married in 1980, versus 65% now.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell delivers remarks during a press conference following the announcement that the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged, in Washington on Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 13, 2024

Fed leaves rates unchanged and says cuts delayed to possibly December

U.S. policymakers are content to leave rates where they are until the economy sends a clear signal that something else is needed.
Debt rating firms have raised SoftBank Group’s grade as the Tokyo-based company’s earnings from investments begin to stabilize.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 13, 2024

SoftBank’s bond underwriting fee drops for first time in decade

The firm paid brokerages ¥1.10 per ¥100 to underwrite ¥550 billion of seven-year notes for individual investors, according to a company filing.

Longform

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