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JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 27, 2023

More tests show radiation levels of Fukushima seawater remain below limits

Tokyo hopes what it says is a transparent release of data will serve as a strong rebuttal to claims by Beijing that the discharge is dangerous.
A man rests at a fresh food market in Shanghai, China, in early August. The world's second largest economy was meant to drive a third of global growth this year, so its dramatic slowdown in recent months is sounding alarm bells across the world.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 28, 2023

China’s economic slowdown is rippling across the globe

Policymakers are bracing for a hit to their economies as China’s imports of everything from construction materials to electronics slide.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 28, 2023

Car thefts on the rise in Japan as vehicle prices remain high

Cases of car theft increased last year for the first time in almost a decade, with Aichi the most affected prefecture, and are still rising rapidly.
Jerome Powell, chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, from left, Kazuo Ueda, governor of the Bank of Japan (BOJ), and Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), walk the grounds at the Jackson Hole economic symposium in Moran, Wyoming, on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 28, 2023

At Jackson Hole, post-inflation challenges vex central bankers

The bankers stressed the need to keep interest rates high until inflation is contained, and wrestled with deep shifts that will make their jobs harder.
A 2023 Toyota Prius. Hybrids have accounted for less than 10% of total U.S. sales, with Toyota’s long-running Prius among the most popular models.
BUSINESS
Aug 28, 2023

Gas-electric hybrids get boost in the U.S. from Ford and others

Ford is the latest of several top automakers planning to build and sell hundreds of thousands of hybrid vehicles in the U.S. over the next five years.
The Sasso 2 Geothermical power plant in Italy
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Aug 28, 2023

Dante’s inferno may have the answer for Europe’s energy bind

One geothermal site in Italy generates more than 5% of the nation’s clean power production.
Japan's exports have been "picking up recently," the government said in its latest monthly economic assessment, its first upward revision since May,
BUSINESS
Aug 28, 2023

Japan improves view on exports for first time in three months

The Cabinet Office report cited the boost to auto shipments from easing supply issues and the bottoming out of demand for semiconductor-related goods.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva delivers a speech during a ceremony to celebrate World Environment Day at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia on June 5.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 29, 2023

Brazilian President Lula finds favor in third-term comeback

Veteran leftist faced headwinds initially on his return to office, after a brutal, divisive election against far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro
U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, right, speaks during a meeting with her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao in Beijing on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 29, 2023

U.S. commerce secretary says trade can stabilize U.S.-China ties

The trip to China this week is a key test of efforts by Washington to ease tensions while holding firm on what it considers national security interests.
The Shein logo at the company's office in Singapore in 2022. The company, which sells $7 dresses and $5 home goods in more than 150 countries, has moved its headquarters to Singapore but manufactures most of its products in China.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 29, 2023

U.S. states ask SEC to confirm Shein complies with labor rules

The request adds to pressure on Shein as China hawks in Congress target Chinese firms that do not align with U.S. foreign policy goals.
In its quake damage estimates updated last year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government expects that 4.53 million people will be unable to return home in the aftermath of a massive quake hitting the capital.
JAPAN
Aug 31, 2023

Over-concentration in Tokyo raising risks from possible quake

The government estimate that up to 23,000 people would be killed if a massive quake hits the capital.
The 3M global headquarters in Maplewood, Minnesota. The multinational conglomerate has tentatively agreed to pay more than $5.5 billion to resolve over 300,000 lawsuits claiming it sold the U.S. military defective combat earplugs.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 29, 2023

3M to pay more than $5.5 billion over faulty combat earplugs

Current and former service members allege 3M knew its earplugs were too short to work effectively and that it failed to warn the U.S. government or users.
The Bank of Japan's inflation outlook doesn’t reflect reality, according to one of the country’s leading experts on prices.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 29, 2023

BOJ’s outlook doesn’t reflect reality, key price expert says

While the bank sharply raised its price outlook last month, it was still kept too low, said University of Tokyo economics professor Tsutomu Watanabe.
A gasoline tanker truck at an Eneos gas station in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 29, 2023

LDP approves extension of gasoline subsidy to year-end

The ruling party also agreed in principle to further expand the program, which pays subsidies to oil wholesalers to curb retail fuel price increases.
Japan’s unemployment rate rose for the first time in four months in July.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 29, 2023

Rising jobless rate dims outlook for labor market and inflation

The job market must tighten to spur wage gains, which in turn would contribute to a virtuous cycle of inflation and salaries.
Security personnel guard the BYD booth at the Auto Shanghai show in April 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 29, 2023

China's leading electric carmaker BYD triples half-year profit

This month the company became the first global manufacturer to pass the 5 million milestone in electric vehicle production.
A worker holds a piece of black mass — a mix of lithium, nickel, cobalt, and graphite — at the Li-Cycle lithium-ion battery recycling facility in Ontario in 2021.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 29, 2023

Why the electric-vehicle industry is talking about ‘black mass’

The metallic powder is made by crushing and shredding batteries or battery cells, extracting unwanted elements, then refining the remainder.
A VinFast electric car is parked outside a showroom in Hanoi on Aug. 18.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 29, 2023

EV maker VinFast now worth more than Goldman Sachs and Boeing

VinFast shares closed up 20% at $82.35 Monday, marking a blistering 688% since its market debut Aug. 15. It is currently worth about $190 billion.
The Financial Services Agency said in its annual policy guidance that overseas real estate is among the credit risks to watch this year and that it will assess major banks' "situation of loans” made in this sector.
BUSINESS
Aug 30, 2023

Japan regulator to evaluate banks’ commercial property exposure

Commercial real estate has become one of the highest-profile asset classes hit by rapid rate hikes.
Sundar Pichai, chief executive officer of Alphabet, speaks during an event in Mountain View, California, in May.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 30, 2023

Google to add AI models to its cloud platform

The company also touted its access to Nvidia’s H100 accelerators, a prized commodity during the AI frenzy.
The VinFast logo during an event in Los Angeles in November 2022
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 30, 2023

VinFast’s world-beating gain evokes memory of $400 billion crash

The last time a similar stock rose from relative obscurity to the one the world’s largest companies, it didn’t end well for investors.
A child visits the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on July 6.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 30, 2023

Concerns raised over the 'dangerous' ideology shaping AI debate

Long-termism, and linked ideologies like transhumanism and effective altruism, holds huge sway in universities and throughout the tech sector.
Mitsui, Japan's biggest ammonia importer, will conduct a joint study with three other companies on establishing a hydrogen and ammonia supply chain through the Osaka coastal industrial zone.
BUSINESS
Aug 30, 2023

Trading and energy firms tie up to study Osaka fuel supply chains

Hydrogen and ammonia, which do not emit carbon dioxide when burning, are an important part of Japan's energy security strategy.
Toyota's sales in China fell in July amid intense competition with local brands.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 30, 2023

Toyota output hits monthly record for July on robust demand

Worldwide sales, including for subsidiaries Daihatsu and Hino, rose 5.2% to 918,345 units.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 30, 2023

Kishida announces extension of measures to bring gas prices down

The subsidy program will be extended until the end of the year and will be beefed up starting next week.
A Toyota factory in Toyota, Aichi Prefecture, in 2015. A computer system processing orders for vehicle parts for the company broke down Tuesday, forcing the closure of 14 assembly plants in Japan.
BUSINESS / EXPLAINER
Aug 30, 2023

What happened to shut down Toyota's production in Japan?

Disruption shut down a system at the core of Toyota's lean manufacturing process.
Artificial intelligence may well enable the automation of many tasks and the replacement of some workers. But AI tools are still fallible and are unlikely to replace humans any time soon.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 30, 2023

AI and the productivity imperative

The global economic outlook for the next decade appears grim. But a surge in productivity — fueled by artificial intelligence — could change that picture.
Actively managed exchange-trade funds are set to debut on the Tokyo Stock Exchange next week.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 31, 2023

Active ETFs cash in on corporate reform in Japan

Actively managed exchange-trade funds are set to launch in Tokyo next week.
Union workers of Sogo & Seibu hold banners which read 'on strike' in front of the company's flagship Seibu Ikebukuro store in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 31, 2023

Sogo & Seibu labor union begins strike at flagship Ikebukuro store

While the labor union made a strong effort to prevent Seven & I from proceeding with the deal, a decision was made to sell the department store unit.
A customer browses iPhone cases at an Apple store in India.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 31, 2023

Apple trials making devices with 3D printers

The move could reduce the time it takes to build devices while also helping the environment by using less material, according to the sources.

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