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Amid the election of Sanae Takaichi as Liberal Democratic Party president, and possibly the next prime minister, Japan's economy shows signs of recovery, but weak wages, a conservative corporate culture and currency issues raise doubts about a true economic thaw.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 13, 2025

Hypothermia in the land of the rising Sanae

Of late, the country has suddenly given every impression of heat. There are good reasons to believe hypothermia is over.
Brooklyn Nets' Cam Thomas dribbles past Phoenix Suns' Oso Ighodaro during the NBA pre-season basketball game at the Venetian Arena in Macau on Sunday.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 14, 2025

The NBA’s return to China is no slam dunk

From a commercial point of view, re-engaging with its second-biggest market is an obvious move.
Yuichiro Tamaki, leader of the Democratic Party for the People, holds a news conference at the Diet on Oct. 7. The collapse of the LDP-Komeito coalition highlights the risks of an opposition more focused on obstruction than solutions. 
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 14, 2025

Japan’s opposition coalition is a recipe for paralysis, not progress

The collapse of the LDP-Komeito coalition highlights the risks of an opposition more focused on obstruction than solutions.
The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt moors at Changi Naval Base in Singapore in April 2018.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 14, 2025

Singapore thrived in a U.S.-led world. Now what?

Singapore is a mind-blowing success story that reminds us how distinctive America’s post-World War II global project was.
U.S. President Donald Trump holds up a signed executive order on tariffs at the White House on April 2. Trump's protectionism is rippling through labor markets and dampening consumer demand around the world.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 14, 2025

Is the global economy as resilient as it seems?

U.S. economic expansion is losing steam as the Trump's erratic economic policies, harsh immigration tactics and cuts in social expenditures take a toll on growth and employment.

Longform

Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.
Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building