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COMMUNITY
Mar 31, 2002

Keigo: A lexicon of control

Whether you're Japanese or not, chances are you have conflicting feelings about Japan's formal respect-language, keigo. On the one hand, it is one of the most difficult aspects of the language to truly master. On the other, many feel that it somehow contains and expresses a truly Japanese essence. Then...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 31, 2002

How to teach the teachers to teach?

To Doreen Simmons, who for more than 20 of her 28 years in Japan has been an editor in the International Affairs Department of the Diet, the idea of Japan adopting English as its second official language sounds "totally unrealistic."
COMMUNITY
Mar 31, 2002

War of the words

Ah, Nihongo. Of all foreign languages, this is the one that keeps you on your toes. An Occidental beginner might suspect that the Japanese did it on purpose -- sowed their language with mines and pitfalls to thwart non-native penetration. To 16th-century European missionaries, Japanese was the devil's...
BUSINESS
Mar 30, 2002

UFJ Holdings anticipates net loss of 1.2 trillion yen

UFJ Holdings Inc. said Friday that it expects to post a consolidated net loss of 1.2 trillion yen for the 2001 business year, which ends this month, up from the loss of 600 billion yen forecast in November.
BUSINESS
Mar 30, 2002

Habits hinder car parts imports: METI

A number of practices considered to be customary by domestic car users hinder imports of replacement auto parts, according to a trade ministry report.
BUSINESS / ON THE FRONT LINE
Mar 29, 2002

Brace for realities of the new fiscal year

The recent developments on the Tokyo stock market have been perplexing.
BUSINESS
Mar 29, 2002

Government experts butt heads over path to recovery

Discord is increasing between two key government panels debating whether to prioritize tax cuts or fiscal belt-tightening.
BUSINESS
Mar 29, 2002

Japan Telecom forges alliance with Qwest

Japan Telecom Co. said Thursday it has agreed with Qwest Communications Corp. of the United States to jointly offer international data communications network services in Japan, the U.S. and Europe.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 29, 2002

Davos themes dazzle with Webcasting

SEOUL -- If you missed Davos in New York last month, you have a rain check coming via the miracle of Webcasting. The more important panels will be broadcast at the World Economic Forum's Web site ( www.weforum.org ), starting Monday. Don't pass up this intellectual cyberfest for the netizen!
BUSINESS
Mar 28, 2002

Mitsubishi, Nissho Iwai to combine steel operations

Trading houses Mitsubishi Corp. and Nissho Iwai Corp. said Wednesday they will set up a joint venture Oct. 1 to integrate their steel businesses.
BUSINESS
Mar 28, 2002

Three electric cable makers to merge

Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd. and two other electric cable makers said Wednesday they have reached a basic agreement to integrate operations to overcome a slump in demand.
BUSINESS
Mar 28, 2002

DaimlerChrysler's Eckrodt to take over at MMC

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. announced Wednesday that its executive vice president, Rolf Eckrodt, who came from DaimlerChrysler AG, will become the automaker's president and chief executive officer.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 27, 2002

Explosive issues dominate Arab summit

BEIRUT -- Arab summits may deal with any matter of common concern to the 22 member states of the "Arab Nation." The matter may be "ordinary" or "emergency," but in practice the more or less permanent emergency of Palestine has furnished 90 percent of their resolutions. Only occasionally have other issues...
BUSINESS
Mar 27, 2002

Big banks continue to write off bad loans

The nation's 13 major banks are expected to book a combined 7.5 trillion yen in loan-loss charges for the business year to March 31, about 1 trillion yen more than the 6.44 trillion yen previously estimated, banking sources said Tuesday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 27, 2002

Kansai No. 2 runway edges forward

OSAKA -- Some 240 airport and construction officials attended a ceremony Tuesday at Kansai International Airport to mark the building of a second runway, projected for completion by 2007.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Mar 27, 2002

Humans' distance laid bare in two close-ups on 'intimacy'

Theater Project Tokyo's current, compelling double bill, "TPT Futures 2002," grapples head-on with how, as time and circumstances change, people deal with the eternally fraught business of maintaining or severing their intimate ties with others.
BUSINESS
Mar 26, 2002

Nissan, MMC sign transmission pact

Nissan Motor Co., its transmission unit Jatco TransTechnology Ltd. and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. signed an agreement Monday to integrate the automatic transmission and continually variable transmission businesses of MMC and Jatco, the three firms said.
EDITORIALS
Mar 25, 2002

More needed than festive spirit

This year is a special one for Japan and South Korea. Not only does the World Cup kick off in two months' time, but 2002 has also been designated the "Year of People-to-People Exchange Between Japan and the Republic of Korea." The governments of both countries have high hopes that the successful cohosting...
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Mar 25, 2002

Sinking investment signals need to embrace deflation

Two sets of key government statistics on economic conditions released earlier this month -- the October-December data on corporate activities issued March 6 and the quarterly 2001 annual gross domestic product released March 8 -- both highlighted the lackluster state of capital investment by Japanese...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 24, 2002

Hotel turns over a new leaf

Big hotels are features of most big cities, and Tokyo is no exception. Rearing into the sky, often straddling whole blocks, they're the temporary homes and permanent workplaces for small armies of people -- which brings serious environmental consequences.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Mar 24, 2002

And for your comic delight: The Suzuki Show

Contrary to popular belief, what's good for the goose is not always good for the gander. When Makiko Tanaka was ousted as foreign minister, tears helped crystallize a victim image that guarantees her political longevity. On the other hand, those of Muneo Suzuki, the main victim of Makiko's victimhood,...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Mar 24, 2002

Tune in for the final stretch

Next Sunday, Nippon TV's irreverent variety show "Denpa Shonen," the prototype of bizarre Japanese reality-TV programs, will once again end its long successful run with a pledge to be reincarnated in the near future. On Saturday at 9 p.m., however, there will be a special two-hour installment summing...
BUSINESS
Mar 23, 2002

BOJ is almost positive in latest economic assessment

The Bank of Japan on Friday upgraded its economic assessment for the first time in 20 months, citing improvements in exports and inventories.
BUSINESS
Mar 23, 2002

Sumitomo Life to raise 150 billion yen

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. said Friday it will raise 150 billion yen in perpetual subordinated loans from Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and other concerns by the end of March in a bid to strengthen its financial standing.
BUSINESS
Mar 22, 2002

Culture clash arises out of FTA deliberations

Japan and Mexico have made it halfway through what for Japan remains an unexplored tunnel and are beginning to see a glimmer of light.
BUSINESS
Mar 21, 2002

FSA scolds firms over short selling

The Financial Services Agency on Wednesday ordered five securities houses to improve their business practices regarding short selling.
COMMENTARY / WASHINGTON UPDATE
Mar 21, 2002

Americans continue to rally behind President Bush's war on terrorism

WASHINGTON -- The last week began with ceremonies marking the six-month anniversary of the terrorist attack on the United States. President George W. Bush took advantage of the occasion to project his program for the next phase of the war on terrorism.
LIFE / Digital / NAME OF THE GAME
Mar 21, 2002

Xbox ball: 'Inside Drive'

Strip away the marketing hype. If you want to know what kinds of people video game console makers are targeting, take a look at the kinds of games they play.
BUSINESS
Mar 20, 2002

Nippon Suisan to post 16 billion yen loss

Nippon Suisan Kaisha Ltd., Japan's second-largest seafood supplier, said Tuesday it anticipates parent-only net losses of 16 billion yen for the 2001 business year to March 31, a reversal from earlier forecast profits of 1.7 billion yen.
BUSINESS
Mar 20, 2002

Daiei seeks government handout

As part of its rebuilding efforts, debt-saddled supermarket chain Daiei Inc. filed with the government Tuesday for tax breaks and other preferential treatment under the industrial rehabilitation law, government officials said.

Longform

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The rise of AI companionship in a lonely Japan