Search - list

 
 
The launch of a rocket carrying a spy satellite, as claimed by the North Korean government, in a location given as North Gyeongsang Province, North Korea, in this handout picture obtained on Nov. 21.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 1, 2023

U.S., Japan and South Korea hit North with sanctions over satellite

The move comes after North Korea successfully launched its first reconnaissance satellite, designed to monitor U.S. and South Korean military movements.
JAPAN
Dec 1, 2023

Japan falls out of top 10 in digital government rankings

The result reflects a series of problems with the country's My Number social security and tax identification cards.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 1, 2023

Japan’s 2023 buzzword of the year is all about winning

A.R.E — based on the Japanese word “are” (“that”) — took the top spot, after the Hanshin Tigers popularized the term as an indirect reference to victory.
JAPAN
Dec 1, 2023

U.S. Osprey crash rekindles safety concerns in Japan

The unique aircraft has had its share of incidents, but still has a relatively safe record compared to other military aircraft.
CULTURE / Music / Sound Off
Dec 2, 2023

The entertainment story of the year is long overdue

As entertainment heavyweights Johnny & Associates and Takarazuka Revue are hit by scandals, hope for reform emerges with changing attitudes toward abuse.
Tokyo Healthcare University professor Takayuki Mifune explains how he is trying to re-create bonito broth from 1,300 years ago.
JAPAN / Science & Health / Longform
Dec 4, 2023

The quest to re-create what the Japanese ate 1,300 years ago

Professor Takayuki Mifune and his team are hoping to understand, in minute detail, the culinary habits of our Japanese ancestors.
U.S. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in her chambers at the Supreme Court in Washington in 2003.
WORLD
Dec 2, 2023

Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female U.S. Supreme Court justice, dies at 93

The court said in a statement that O'Connor died in Phoenix of complications related to advanced dementia and a respiratory illness.
Damaged houses following the deadly Oct. 7 attack by Hamas gunmen in southern Israel.
WORLD
Dec 2, 2023

Israel's most wanted: The three Hamas leaders it aims to kill

Sources familiar with Israel's thinking have said that the offensive in Gaza was unlikely to stop until three top Hamas commanders are dead or captured.
A worker at the Ford F-150 Lightning plant in Dearborn, Michigan in April last year. New government rules will try to shift more production of electric vehicle batteries and the materials that power them to the United States.
BUSINESS
Dec 2, 2023

U.S. sets limits on Chinese content to receive EV tax credits

The guidelines establish a 25% ownership threshold for a company or group to be classified as a foreign entity of concern.
Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Shohei Ohtani on deck against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Aug. 28
BASEBALL / MLB
Dec 5, 2023

Shohei Ohtani decision expected 'within the week,' reports say

The free agent two-way star is projected to receive a record-setting contract worth more than $500 million.
Kei Umeda, CEO of Mizuho Trust & Banking, speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Nov. 27.
BUSINESS
Dec 5, 2023

Mizuho sees firms scrambling to meet TSE's capital efficiency call

In January the Tokyo bourse will start publishing a list of companies that have disclosed action plans in line with its call to improve use of capital.
Japanese hotels have been among the most popular real estate investments in the Asia-Pacific region this year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 5, 2023

Blackstone buys Kyoto hotel from Goldman in $54 million deal

Japanese hotels have been among the most popular real estate investments in the Asia-Pacific region this year.
A representative for Morgan Stanley, which in August said it was 70% of the way toward reaching the $1 trillion in sustainable financing it’s told investors it will achieve by 2030, declined to comment beyond referring to the bank’s latest ESG report.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 5, 2023

What banks really mean when they put trillions into ESG

With each bank announcing a different target, investors are left with little insight into the ways in which banks are defining what’s sustainable.
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson signing the Brexit trade deal with the EU in London on Dec. 30, 2020.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 6, 2023

Three years on, U.K. factories still face Brexit challenges

A survey by trade body Make U.K found that 90% of businesses felt post-Brexit trading arrangements were still disrupting trade with the EU.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Dec 6, 2023

Wild 2023 the storm before the calm for Japan’s national sport

The sport finished on a high this year, setting up enticing possibilities for 2024 as several potential stars emerge.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 6, 2023

Satellite imagery startup iQPS surges 82% in Tokyo debut

The stock opened at ¥860 per share versus its IPO price of ¥390, with trading delayed by nearly five hours due to a glut of buy orders.
While broad-based action at the COP28 summit is critical, the fact is that just a few key actors such as the U.S., China and India have the power to bring about a radical reduction in global emissions.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 6, 2023

COP28 can deliver progress on climate change, but will it?

Committed global climate action at every level of government, the economy, and society is needed to tackle such a complex, multifaceted challenge.
As a customer for Renault's combustion-engine venture, Nissan will receive gearboxes and engines for 12 of its plants.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 6, 2023

Nissan to buy engines and gearboxes from Renault-Geely venture

The step is part of a major revamp of the firms working together following years of growing tensions.
Rakuten Bank executives hold a placard showing the company logo during a ceremony to mark the company's debut on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on April 21.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 6, 2023

Rakuten to raise up to $433 million with further sale of bank unit

The planned sale of 25.5 million shares is equivalent to just under 15% of the online bank, according to LSEG data.
Few could have predicted what artificial-intelligence proponents are dreaming up these days.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 7, 2023

Wall Street quants see mixed results from chatbots amid AI boom

As AI tools get more sophisticated, companies are updating their presentations to incorporate a positive vocal tone and upbeat sentences, research shows.
Traffic along a highway amid heavy smog and pollution in New Delhi in November
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Dec 7, 2023

As China enjoys cleaner air, India's pollution struggle continues

Huge swaths of northern India choke on clouds of polluted air during winter as temperatures drop, winds disappear and farmers set fields ablaze.
Ground Self-Defense Force personnel take part in a military drill involving a V-22 Osprey aircraft in June 2022.
EDITORIALS
Dec 8, 2023

The Osprey crash has lessons for the U.S.-Japan alliance

The U.S. and Japan bungled the initial response to the crash of an Osprey aircraft in Japan. Both must learn to improve communication in the future.
Kubura fishing port and Kubura district on the island of Yonaguni, Okinawa Prefecture
JAPAN
Dec 17, 2023

Frontier islanders decry lack of plan to aid fleeing Taiwanese

Concerned about the potential for a China-Taiwan conflict, Japan has embarked on its biggest defense buildup since World War II.
Rina Gonoi, a former member of the Self-Defense Forces, who has accused colleagues of sexually assaulting her during her time in the military, speaks in Yokohama on Friday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 11, 2023

Former Japanese soldier fights for justice in landmark sexual assault case

A former Self-Defence Forces member's yearslong fight for justice against the men she has accused of sexually assaulting her will reach a climax on Tuesday when a court delivers a verdict in a trial that has drawn international attention.
Israeli soldiers keep position on a hill overlooking northern Gaza on Monday.
WORLD
Dec 12, 2023

Gaza destruction worse than in WWII Germany, EU's top diplomat says

Josep Borrell considers Israel's military operation to be disproportionate in terms of civilian deaths and damage to civilian property and infrastructure.
Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron” received Golden Globes nominations for best animated motion picture and best original score for a motion picture this week.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Dec 12, 2023

'The Boy and the Heron' and 'Godzilla Minus One' win over U.S.

While both Japanese films broke records at the North American box office, Hayao Miyazaki's latest also received two Golden Globes nominations.
The partnership between Nissan and Renault was jolted in 2018 by the arrest of Carlos Ghosn, chairman of both companies.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 12, 2023

Renault selling part of Nissan stake to partner for €765 million

The move follows last month’s finalization of a plan for Renault to reduce its interest in Nissan.
The development of AI worries many, including Sam Altman, who testified in Congress in May that he was "nervous" about the technology's ability to compromise election integrity.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 12, 2023

A look at the world's first AI-powered political campaign caller

Ashley is one of the first examples of how generative AI is ushering in a new era of political campaigning.
Shingo Takashima, a 26-year-old doctor, killed himself three months into his specialty doctor training at a general hospital in Kobe.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Dec 13, 2023

Young doctor’s suicide highlights overwork culture at Japan hospitals

The issue is coming into sharper focus ahead of the April implementation of a legal cap on doctors’ overtime.
The Tokyo headquarters of the Unification Church in Shibuya Ward
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 13, 2023

Japan enacts law to monitor Unification Church assets

The special legislation is designed to ensure that victims of the organization's malpractices have a source of relief.

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