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COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Aug 6, 2006

Many happy returns to my Tokyo village past and present

As readers of this column last week may recall, I wrote there about a period in the early 1980s when my wife and I lived in the western Tokyo suburb of Soshigaya in Setagaya Ward. Three of our four children were born in the local hospital, and we have only the fondest memories of the old neighborhood....
BUSINESS
Aug 2, 2006

Land prices log first rise in 14 years

The average price of land along selected key thoroughfares nationwide rose for the first time in 14 years, standing at 114,000 yen per sq. meter as of Jan. 1, up 0.9 percent, or 1,000 yen, over a year earlier, the National Tax Agency said Tuesday.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jul 30, 2006

Time-capsule Tokyo along a street where I lived

In the early 1980s, my wife and I lived in a tiny flat in Soshigaya on the Odakyu Line in Tokyo's Setagaya Ward. The eldest three of our four children were born then, and I have only the fondest memories of pushing a pram up and down the kilometer-long shotengai (shopping street) between the station...
BUSINESS / U.S. BUSINESS SCHOOL SYMPOSIUM
Jul 27, 2006

U.S. experts urge Japan to embrace transition to postindustrial economy

See related story: Is Japan about to ride an M&A wave, or flounder in just a ripple?
EDITORIALS
Jul 17, 2006

A guy, a paper clip and the Internet

It's tempting to forget about finding a larger meaning in the story of Kyle MacDonald and to just sit back and enjoy it. Mr. MacDonald is the 26-year-old Canadian blogger who has rocketed from Internet cult figure to mainstream news item since he pulled off a remarkable bartering feat recently, trading...
CULTURE / Books
Jul 9, 2006

Looking at Westerners' accounts of the salaryman blues

THE BLUE-EYED SALARYMAN by Niall Murtagh. Profile Books, 2006, 228 pp., £7.99 (paper). The phenomenon didn't start with Lafcadio Hearn, but in his day he became best known for it -- the foreigner who comes to Japan and writes a book about his experiences. His female contemporary, Isabella Bird, was...
EDITORIALS
Jul 8, 2006

Payback time after merging

The drama triggered when the Murakami fund, managed by maverick investor Mr. Yoshiaki Murakami, purchased a large chunk of Hanshin Electric Railway Co. shares came to an end last week as shareholders of both Hanshin and Hankyu Holdings Inc. voted for a merger. It is the first merger of major railway...
Japan Times
LIFE
Jun 25, 2006

Tokyo's ring of steel

Who would have thought that something that chases its tail all day for a living could be so incredibly important to the workings of a major metropolis?
JAPAN
Jun 23, 2006

Ah, no kids afoot: Empty trains, work till you die

There has been a great deal of hand-wringing in the media and government about Japan's population implosion. A breakdown in the pension system, soaring health-care costs, slower economic growth and a looming labor shortage are just a few of the dark clouds on the horizon.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2006

Fitch keeps Hankyu ratings intact

Fitch Ratings said Wednesday it has decided to keep the credit ratings of Hankyu Holdings Inc. unchanged because the burden stemming from the tender offer for Hanshin Electric Railway Co. shares has stayed within the anticipated level.
BUSINESS
Jun 20, 2006

Trust banks should handle assets, new BOJ member says

Newly appointed Bank of Japan Policy Board member Tadao Noda said Monday that entrusting stockholdings with trust banks is one way to boost the transparency of senior BOJ officials' financial assets.
BUSINESS
Jun 6, 2006

Murakami fund to sell Hanshin stake to Hankyu

The investment fund led by Yoshiaki Murakami announced Monday that it is selling its shares in Hanshin Electric Railway Co., paving the way for Hankyu Holdings Inc.'s takeover bid for Hanshin.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
May 30, 2006

'Gokiburi,' new law and residency

Cockroaches One of our readers has been having problems with cockroaches recently. She has been cleaning the apartment regularly, placing cockroach traps and even used a "bomb" to try and get rid of them, all to no avail.
EDITORIALS
May 20, 2006

Business profits pose challenges

One company after another is announcing good business results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2006. Firms listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange are reporting increased revenues and profits for the fourth consecutive year. They are expected to post record recurring profits for the...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / TOKYO FOOD FILE
May 19, 2006

Beacon: Power dining that shines

The stock market's up and ditto consumer spending. Real estate is rebounding and there's even talk of another bubble. No surprise then that we've been seeing plenty of upmarket restaurants opening in recent months. Better still, some of our favorite restaurateurs are getting into the action.
BUSINESS
May 18, 2006

Bankruptcies surged 14.9% in April

The number of corporate bankruptcies in Japan jumped 14.9 percent in April from the previous year to 1,087, with debts totaling 426.78 billion yen, and among them are contractors stung by a state crackdown on bid-rigging, Tokyo Shoko Research said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2006

Household savings up 2.1% in '05, averaging 17 million yen

Households with two or more members held average total savings of 17.28 million yen in 2005, up 2.1 percent from 16.92 million yen the previous year, the government said Friday.
COMMENTARY / World
May 11, 2006

Seeing Europe as a museum

WARSAW -- In the late 19th century, Europe viewed Asia mainly as either a source of inspiration for its artists or a focus of imperial ambition. Asians, for their part, viewed Europe as either a model of modernity, as in Meiji Japan, or a barometer of decay, as in China.
JAPAN
May 2, 2006

Female, elderly entrepreneurs on the rise as society grays

The number of women and elderly people preparing to start new businesses has been rising amid the aging of the population and consequent decrease in the number of small and midsize companies as their owners retire, a recent government report says.
BUSINESS
Apr 28, 2006

Earnings solid at JFE, Kobe Steel

Major steelmakers JFE Holdings Co. and Kobe Steel Ltd. both reported strong earnings Thursday for fiscal 2005 to March 31, thanks to robust domestic and overseas demand.
JAPAN
Apr 26, 2006

Dad urges harshest sentence for Obara

Timothy Blackman asked the Tokyo District Court on Tuesday to give the maximum penalty to Joji Obara, who is standing trial for the rape and fatal drugging of his daughter, Lucie, as well as another death and the rapes of eight other women.
JAPAN
Apr 18, 2006

Huser president facing criminal investigation

Police will launch a criminal investigation of Susumu Ojima, president of condominium developer Huser Ltd., and could arrest him as early as next month over a building constructed with quake safety data faked by architect Hidetsugu Aneha, sources said Monday.
JAPAN
Apr 15, 2006

Aneha to be arrested over quake-resistance data fabrication

Police investigators plan to arrest former architect Hidetsugu Aneha by the end of this month on suspicion of fabricating quake-resistance data for condominiums and budget hotels, sources said Friday.
BUSINESS
Apr 15, 2006

Bankruptcies declined to 14-year low in 2005

The number of companies that went bankrupt with debts of 10 million yen or more in fiscal 2005 fell for the fourth straight year to a 14-year low, thanks to a pickup in economic activity and government aid for struggling firms, a private credit research agency said Friday.
BUSINESS
Apr 13, 2006

Convenience stores outshined stale supermarkets in 2005

Japan's major convenience stores on Wednesday posted rosy figures for the 2005 business year, while supermarket chains lagged despite signs that personal consumption is recovering.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET
Apr 11, 2006

Exploring the world on manga — where to get started?

Hisashi Sakata Public servant, 30 All Japanese know about "doko de mo door," the "everywhere door." In Doraemon, the manga about a robotic cat, you can use the door to travel anywhere you want to go. We can dream of escaping wherever we want to go!
JAPAN
Apr 1, 2006

Designers, sellers of defective buildings face law with teeth

The Cabinet approved a package of bills Friday from the infrastructure ministry that feature a provision to toughen the maximum penalty for architects and builders who erect defective buildings.

Longform

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.
A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan