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JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Feb 3, 2002

A little bit of Martha in every rabbit hutch

Considering the state of the Japanese economy, the current popularity of penny-pinching advice in the media is hardly surprising. There seems to be a fundamental paradox at work here, in that advertisers prefer programs and articles which encourage the spending of money, while the advice given out these...
LIFE / Food & Drink / NIHONSHU
Feb 3, 2002

Clearly making the grade isn't such an easy task

One of the biggest barriers to learning about sake is the terminology used to define the various grades. It is not a simple linguistic matter, as even the average Japanese person, more often than not, does not know specifically to what the terminology refers. These terms were not coined at once, nor...
BASEBALL / MLB
Feb 2, 2002

BayStars get new owners

Seafood manufacturer Maruha Corp. said Thursday it has signed a deal with Tokyo Broadcasting System Inc. and a TBS affiliate for the transfer of ownership of Central League baseball club Yokohama BayStars.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

Manufacturer overtime decreased 8.5% last year

Overtime in the domestic manufacturing sector fell 8.5 percent from the previous year to an average of 12.6 hours a month in 2001, according to a government survey released Thursday.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

Dollar poised to give back recent gains

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan sounded a somewhat optimistic note on economic prospects last week.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

Nippon Shinpan's board OKs asset sales

Nippon Shinpan Co. said Thursday its board has approved a basic agreement with a Japanese investment fund over the sale of a majority equity stake in Kokunai Shinpan Co., one of its consumer credit arms.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

Nikko Cordial suffers in April-December period

Nikko Cordial Corp. said Thursday it fell into the red in the April-December period as an extended slump in the domestic stock market cut into key revenue sources, such as brokerage commissions and underwriting fees.
BUSINESS
Feb 1, 2002

China's IT engineers get smoother visa path

Japanese and Chinese bodies responsible for assessing the qualifications of information technology engineers signed a memorandum of understanding for mutual recognition Thursday in Beijing.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2002

Tokyo impounds relabeled imported beef

Tokyo Metropolitan Government officials on Wednesday impounded about 3.5 tons of imported beef repackaged as domestic and stored at Snow Brand Food Co.'s warehouse in Tokyo's Ota Ward.
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2002

Minami finally throws in the towel

Minami Corp., a cash-strapped sporting goods retailer, filed for court protection from creditors Wednesday with liabilities of 28.9 billion yen, the company said.
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2002

Public funds won't help banks, Mizuho exec says

A fresh injection of public funds would hamper, not help, Japan's banks, a banking official tapped to be the next president of the Mizuho Holdings Inc. banking group said Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jan 31, 2002

Kansai Kogin lied in recapitalization drive

OSAKA -- Failed credit union Kansai Kogin raised more than 15 billion yen in additional capital in 1999 and early 2000 without telling potential investors that it was facing financial difficulties, sources close to the credit union said Wednesday.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / NAME OF THE GAME
Jan 31, 2002

Nautical 'kombat' game is a wash

Role-playing games, probably the most popular genre in Japan, have a moderate following in the United States. Americans prefer action-packed, top-down view style RPGs like "Baldur's Gate" and "Diablo" to traditional "Final Fantasy" RPGs.
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2002

Life, nonlife insurers scrap tieup

Tokio Marine & Fire Insurance Co. and Asahi Mutual Life Insurance Co. have decided to scrap their plans to integrate under a single holding company by March 2003 due to the cautious stance of the nonlife insurer, sources from the two companies said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2002

Analysts release ethical standards draft

The Security Analysts Association of Japan has unveiled a draft on professional ethical standards that calls for analysts to be banned from investing in securities that they recommend to investors.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 31, 2002

Sumitomo, Mitsui announce tieup of construction arms

General contractors Sumitomo Construction Co. and Mitsui Construction Co. formally announced on Wednesday their plan to integrate their management but said the timing of the move and numerical business targets are still under discussion.
BUSINESS
Jan 30, 2002

Showa Denko revises earnings, expects net loss

Chemical manufacturer Showa Denko K.K. said Tuesday it revised downward its fiscal 2001 group earnings projection to a 34.5 billion yen net loss from a break-even estimate due to additional advanced writeoffs of about 31.6 billion yen in restructuring costs.
BUSINESS
Jan 30, 2002

Liberty Mutual Insurance to pull out

Major U.S. nonlife insurer Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. plans to withdraw from the Japanese market at the end of March because the country's business prospects are poor, industry sources said Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Jan 30, 2002

Nissho Iwai to eliminate 5,000 jobs in restructuring

Major trading house Nissho Iwai Corp. on Tuesday announced a three-year restructuring plan featuring a cut of 5,000 jobs from its current consolidated workforce of 19,000.
BUSINESS
Jan 30, 2002

Daiei to sell position in Maruko

Struggling retailer Daiei Inc. said Tuesday it will sell all its shares in its wholly owned real estate subsidiary Maruko Inc. for 15.1 billion yen as part of its rehabilitation plan.
BUSINESS
Jan 29, 2002

19 Mycal outlets to close doors

OSAKA -- Failed supermarket chain operator Mycal Corp. announced Monday that it will close 19 outlets nationwide, including Otaru Vivre in Hokkaido and Toyoda Saty in Aichi Prefecture.
BUSINESS / TAKING STOCK
Jan 29, 2002

Bourse in wait-and-see mode

While the Tokyo stock market awaits signs of the government's resolve to fix the nation's financial woes, macroeconomic environments surrounding the market are gradually showing improvement.
JAPAN
Jan 28, 2002

More fraud allegations emerge in Snow debacle

Compiled from wire services Scandal-ravaged Snow Brand Food Co. faced fresh allegations Sunday that it asked a storage contractor to lie about how much beef was in a container in order to cash in on a government mad cow subsidy.
JAPAN
Jan 27, 2002

JAS to stop flights abroad from Kansai

Japan Air System plans to stop operating international flights to and from Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture when the second runway at Narita airport outside Tokyo opens in April, JAS sources said Saturday.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 27, 2002

Hi-Vision advocates display a lack of foresight

Being someone who isn't intimidated by purchases of electronics, I recently entered the digital age with an alarming lack of serious forethought. I bought a digital BS tuner. At less than 50,000 yen, it's hardly a huge investment by itself, but since being hooked up to my TV, it's caused me to reflect...

Longform

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