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BUSINESS
May 23, 2003

Disinflation to accelerate in major economies: Fukui

The world's major economies are on the verge of accelerated disinflation as deflationary pressure grows on a global scale, Bank of Japan Gov. Toshihiko Fukui said Thursday.
BUSINESS
May 23, 2003

Nintendo's record profit run ends

Nintendo Co. said Thursday its consolidated net profit fell 36.8 percent to 67.27 billion yen in fiscal 2002, largely due to lower-than-expected sales of game consoles.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / JET STREAM
May 22, 2003

Political scientist gained key perspective in Japan

On March 19, just hours before U.S. forces began their raids on Baghdad, more than 50 U.S. government intelligence experts as well as scholars and embassy staff from several South Asian countries assembled in a top-floor room at John Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies for a...
BUSINESS
May 21, 2003

Kawaguchi hits WTO draft report

Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi expressed dissatisfaction Tuesday with a World Trade Organization draft report on the liberalization of nonfarm trade, saying calls for the elimination of tariffs on certain products are unacceptable.
COMMENTARY
May 21, 2003

Narrowing the U.S.-South Korean gap

WASHINGTON -- The summit meeting between U.S. President George W. Bush and South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun was, by almost all accounts, a success. The main reason, according to the skeptics, was that expectations were very low. No major breakthroughs were achieved, they argue; "success" merely meant...
BUSINESS
May 21, 2003

BOJ decides to pump more cash into system

The Bank of Japan decided Tuesday to pump still more money into the economy amid falling stock prices, a rising yen and the bailout of Resona Bank.
BUSINESS
May 21, 2003

Shiokawa ponders extra budget

Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Tuesday he would consider compiling an extra budget to fight deflation should the ruling coalition submit specific proposals to this end.
BUSINESS
May 20, 2003

Ailing contractors to delay merger

Troubled contractors Kumagai Gumi Co. and Tobishima Corp. said Monday they will delay the deadline for their planned merger for a year until April 2005 so they can prepare more carefully.
BUSINESS
May 20, 2003

43-year-old to become president at Sega Corp.

Sega Corp., which saw two potential merger deals slide down the drain earlier this month, announced Monday that a 43-year-old senior officer will replace Hideki Sato as president.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 19, 2003

Tigers gnaw Giants to take series 2-1

Makoto Imaoka hit a go-ahead RBI double in Hanshin's three-run seventh and added an insurance run with a sacrifice fly in the eighth as the CL-leading Tigers downed the Yomiuri Giants 6-3 at Koshien Stadium on Sunday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 17, 2003

Lawmakers question validity of GDP data

Heavyweights in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Friday accused the government of misleading the public by giving primary importance to real-term figures in its release of gross domestic product data.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 17, 2003

APEC calls for urgent SARS action

Business leaders from member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum wrapped up on Friday a four-day meeting in Tokyo, urging their governments to take decisive action to combat the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome in Asia.
SUMO
May 16, 2003

Asashoryu leads on his own

Mongolian grand champion Asashoryu shoved out Takanonami on Thursday to move into sole possession of the lead at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament.
BUSINESS
May 15, 2003

Kobe Steel plans environmental move

Kobe Steel Ltd. and its subsidiary, Shinko Pantec Co., said Wednesday they have agreed to combine Kobe Steel's environmental business into Shinko Pantec on Oct. 1.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH
May 15, 2003

Big-mouth bulbuls time it just right

Second of two parts Imagine, if you can, an opinion poll of Japanese forest plants. Question: which bird is most important to you? The brown-eared bulbul, or hiyodori, would have to take a bow.
BUSINESS
May 14, 2003

Japan to probe China dumping claim

Japan will scrutinize China's claim that polyvinyl chloride products from Japan are being sold on the Chinese market at unfairly low prices, trade minister Takeo Hiranuma said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
May 14, 2003

Yield cut proposal goes to LDP

The Financial Services Agency presented a draft bill Tuesday to the Liberal Democratic Party that would enable troubled life insurers to lower promised yields on insurance contracts.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2003

Sogo, Seibu to merge operations in June

Struggling department store operator Sogo Inc. announced Monday that it will integrate its operations with Seibu Department Stores Ltd. on June 1 under a new holding company, Millennium Retailing Inc.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
May 13, 2003

Entering the Dragon Palace, English-language driving schools and craft experience

Dragon palace Following on from news of the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka, Tokyo, a reader asks why Meguro Gajoen's Dragon Palace is closed most of the year.
EDITORIALS
May 12, 2003

A great leap forward in China?

Back-to-back calamities are forcing China's leaders to adopt new approaches to governance. A government accustomed to ruling without challenge is now under pressure to restore public confidence in its leadership. Hopes that this might lead to more broad-based political reform are premature, however....
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
May 11, 2003

Bailing the banks while letting the debtors die

Reportedly, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry has decided to address suicide, which has becomes something of an epidemic over the past decade as the economy continues its skid into the void.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
May 11, 2003

In praise of tireless women

In Japanese, a jagged stretch of coastline is referred to as riasu, which is taken from the Spanish word "rias." The word is most commonly used on the northwestern coast of the Iberian Peninsula, or Galicia, which is characterized by hundreds of small coves that provide homes for a rich variety of sea...
BUSINESS
May 10, 2003

IMF exec calls for inflation target

An official of the International Monetary Fund suggested Friday that the Bank of Japan adopt an inflation target.
BUSINESS
May 10, 2003

Softbank posts second net loss

Softbank Corp. said Friday its group net loss worsened in the year through March 31 due to hefty outlays to attract new subscribers to its broadband Internet service.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
May 10, 2003

Law unto himself meets Japanese country singer

Hearing a great cover of the country song "All You Ever Do Is Hurt Me" as he descended into Kenny's Country Music Station one Saturday evening in 2001, Chicago-born Dan Rosen wondered who the American woman singing it was. Imagine his surprise, then, when he looked at the stage and heard "this big, really...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 9, 2003

Camera-phones help DoCoMo to post solid profit

NTT DoCoMo Inc., the nation's top mobile phone firm, said Thursday it posted a group net profit of 212.49 billion yen for the year through March, thanks to strong growth stimulated by camera-equipped handsets.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 9, 2003

Gaming industry revolution falls through

A potential revolution within the gaming industry fell apart Thursday, with Sega Corp. announcing it has scrapped integration talks with Sammy Corp. and video game maker Namco Ltd. saying it has dropped a merger proposal submitted to Sega.

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