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An abandoned house in Urayama, Saitama Prefecture. Buying an <i>akiya</i>, which means empty house in Japanese, can be a rewarding experience that yields a unique space and a livable home, competitively priced. Or it could turn out to be a money pit.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 2, 2024

First lesson of Japan’s akiya gold rush: No such thing as a free house.

Renovations are usually the most expensive part of the journey and the laundry list of what needs to be done is long and tends to get longer after the process starts.
A man raises his arms in front of burning wooden pallets on Sunday as protesters block Tel Aviv's Ayalon highway during an antigovernment rally calling for the release of Israelis held hostage by Palestinian militants in Gaza since October.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 3, 2024

Hostage deaths prompt angry Israelis to push Netanyahu’s red lines

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis protested to demand a truce with Hamas.
Elon Musk during an event in Manhattan in November 2023
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 4, 2024

Musk’s Starlink backs down, vowing to block X in Brazil

Elon Musk’s satellite internet provider Starlink reversed course and said it would comply with an order by Brazil’s top court to block access to X.
Beyond losing the American market, China is losing some of its own manufacturing companies, which are shifting parts of their production to countries such as Vietnam and Mexico to avoid U.S. tariffs.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2024

The rise and coming fall of Chinese manufacturing

Despite China's significant investments in technology, the decline of its manufacturing sector seems inevitable.
A sumo referee performs the dohyō matsuri, or ring purification ceremony, in January 2017 at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo.
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Sep 5, 2024

No talking, no eating, no standing: Inside sumo's ring purification ceremony

Spectators are required to stay seated for its duration, and refrain from using flash when taking photos.
Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara (left), Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong (center left), Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa (center right) and Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles gather for their two-plus-two meeting in Queenscliff, Australia, on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 5, 2024

Japan and Australia look to closer cooperation to deter China

The quasi-allies have committed to coordinate their national security policies “more closely than ever before.”
Inside a gallery influenced by famed architect Kengo Kuma, Nakamura Ningyo's Hakata dolls represent a little-seen side of Japanese crafts.
LIFE / Style & Design
Sep 7, 2024

From Godzilla to martyrs, Hakata doll-making knows no bounds

Since its establishment in Fukuoka in 1917, Nakamura Ningyo has been a cornerstone of the Hakata doll tradition.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his wife, Yuko, are welcomed upon their arrival at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, South Korea, on Friday.
EDITORIALS
Sep 6, 2024

Never take Japan-South Korea relations for granted

The two leader’s final meeting is both an opportunity to review recent achievements and to underscore the centrality of the Japan-South Korean partnership.
Former Environment Minister Shinjiro Koizumi declares his candidacy in the Liberal Democratic Party presidential election at a news conference in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 6, 2024

Shinjiro Koizumi promises immediate snap election if elected LDP president

The former environment minister said he will turn to the electorate to allow voters to judge his plan to transform Japan.
Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito attends a session of a panel investigating allegations of workplace harassment against him, in Kobe on Friday.
JAPAN
Sep 6, 2024

Hyogo governor disputes legal protections for harassment whistleblower

Motohiko Saito said that he didn’t believe it was a problem to allow an investigation into the creator of a document making allegations against him.
The Chinese government will remove the last remaining limits on overseas investments in the manufacturing sector starting from Nov. 1 and cut its list of areas that are restricted for foreign investors, according to a statement from the National Development and Reform Commission posted on Sunday.
BUSINESS
Sep 8, 2024

China opens manufacturing, health care sectors to foreign money

Beijing will remove the last limits on overseas investments in the manufacturing sector from Nov. 1 and cut its list of areas that are restricted for foreign investors.
Jannik Sinner celebrates after defeating Taylor Fritz in the U.S. Open final in New York on Sunday.
TENNIS
Sep 9, 2024

Jannik Sinner rolls past Taylor Fritz in U.S. Open final

For 23-year-old Sinner, it was his 55th match win of the season and sixth title.
A video recording of Apollo Quiboloy is streamed inside his megachurch compound in Davao City, Philippines on Aug. 31. Weeks of tense standoff in the Philippines have ended in the capture of a pastor accused of leading an international ring of sex abuse and trafficking of young women and girls.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 9, 2024

Philippines arrests Duterte’s pastor as feud with Marcos deepens

Apollo Quiboloy, the 74-year-old founder of an evangelical church who is wanted by the FBI, was arrested in Davao City after weeks of police operation.
Attorney General Merrick Garland sits between Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco and FBI Director Christopher Wray during a meeting of the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force, in Washington on Sept. 4. Federal prosecutors say Russia secretly paid the American company Tenet Media to push pro-Kremlin messages from social media influencers including Benny Johnson, Tim Pool and Dave Rubin.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 9, 2024

Russia secretly worms its way into America’s conservative media

The latest indictment reflects the growing sophistication of the Kremlin’s long-standing efforts to shape American public opinion and advance its geopolitical goals.
An American flag waves outside the U.S. Department of Justice Building in Washington in 2020.
WORLD / Society
Sep 10, 2024

U.S. says alleged white supremacists tried to use Telegram to spark race war

U.S. prosecutors unveiled criminal charges on Monday against two alleged leaders of a white supremacist gang, saying they used the Telegram social media site to solicit attacks on Black, Jewish, LGBTQ people and immigrants aiming to incite a race war.
A screen displays a message urging supporters of Republican candidate Donald Trump to make a plan to vote early or in-person during a campaign rally in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, on Aug. 30.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 10, 2024

Trump hunts for elusive 2024 election prize — infrequent voters

Trump, more than in previous cycles, sees infrequent voters as critical.
"Shogun" actors (from left) Hiroyuki Sanada, Anna Sawai and Tadanobu Asano are all up for Emmys at this year's awards show.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Sep 10, 2024

'Shogun' clinches record-breaking 14 Creative Arts Emmys

The FX network series set in feudal Japan claimed some of the highest honors at the awards show, including those for costumes, makeup and cinematography.
Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 10, 2024

FBI’s most-wanted pastor’s arrest puts Philippine's Duterte on defense

Apollo Quiboloy, founder of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ church, is wanted by the FBI for alleged sexual abuse, human trafficking and smuggling.
Apple CEO Tim Cook unveils the iPhone 16 at the Steve Jobs Theater on the company's campus in Cupertino, California, on Monday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 10, 2024

iPhone 16 to land in Japan without Apple Intelligence 

The new feature, which uses generative artificial intelligence to analyze text and photos, will only be activated in 2025 in several markets, including Japan.
A suicide crisis helpline worker in Tokyo
JAPAN / Society
Sep 11, 2024

Women comprise 60% of attempted suicide and self-harm cases in Japan

People in their 20s accounted for the biggest share of cases of attempted suicide and self-harm in Japan from December 2022 to December 2023.
The Kangei Maru, a 9,300-ton whaling mothership, was launched in May.
JAPAN
Sep 11, 2024

Japan shows first commercial fin whale catch in 48 years

The country this year added the fin whale to a catch list that already includes minke, Bryde's and sei whales.
Pedestrians cross an intersection in the Shibuya district of Tokyo. Japan has experienced a postpandemic travel boom, with tourists pouring back in after restrictions closed the country’s borders to travelers.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 12, 2024

Japan jumps to No. 2, from sixth place, in Best Countries index

It jumped from 6th place on the 2023 list as a post-COVID boom and reforms helped bump it up on the subindexes used to calculate the overall score.
The Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani celebrates in the dugout after hitting his 47th home run of the season during the first inning against the Cubs in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 12, 2024

Shohei Ohtani moves closer to 50-50 milestone as Dodgers beat Cubs

Ohtani's sixth leadoff homer of the season came on the fourth pitch of the game.
Seven & I Holdings, the operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores, was designated as a "core" company. The government requires any foreign entity to give prior notification of share purchases in a core company of more than 10%.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 13, 2024

Seven & I gets new designation, a potential hurdle for takeover

The new "core" category requires any foreign entity to give prior notification of share purchases in a core company of more than 10%.
A guest uses chopsticks to grab and taste raw meat from a fin whale at the exhibition and business meeting of domestically produced fin whales hosted by Japan's whaling company Kyodo Senpaku at Tokyo's Toyosu market on Friday.
JAPAN / Society
Sep 14, 2024

Hearts, tails and blubber at Japan fin whale tasting

"Once young people eat it and they realize it's good, they will eat it more and more," said Hideki Tokoro, the head of Japan's main whaling firm.
The lapse of the historic U.S.-China Science and Technology Agreement, coupled with escalating tariffs and trade restrictions, has exacerbated economic tensions between the two countries and impacted global stability.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 12, 2024

Resetting U.S.-China economic relations

To address global challenges, active cooperation between the two economic powers is indispensable.
In China, discussing feminism is apparently forbidden, as seen with the controversy over the maker of Black Myth: Wukong censoring feminist topics during streaming, despite its global success and praise for visuals and gameplay. 
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 30, 2024

Wukong makes equal rights for women a taboo topic

Women are increasingly active consumers in the gaming industry: The growth rate of new female gamers in Asia is nearly double that of males.
Phillies players celebrate after a win over the Marlins in Miami earlier this month.
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 18, 2024

DraftKings sued by MLB Players Union for using names and images

Revenue has expanded at DraftKings as it attracted more loyal bettors, even as it faced increased competition from online peers and legacy casinos.
Sony last month officially unveiled a digital ledger, Soneium, while other Japanese firms like Toyota explore various blockchain-related initiatives.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 18, 2024

Sony joins a crypto push in Japan as calls grow for looser rules

The question for the government is whether to heed requests from the crypto industry for less onerous rules to lower costs and spur growth.
Japan might have created the PlayStation brand, but the cost of the latest generation of the console will exclude all but the most hardcore fans.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 18, 2024

PS5 Pro price is a sticker shock for the country that made the PlayStation

With even an entry-level PS5 now costing some ¥72,980 following the latest hike last month, an entire generation of Japanese could be cut off.

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight