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Rural China is now one place that is providing respite for young people. Zhang Boai, 20, joined a program that positions rural jobs not as stop-gaps but as lucrative commercial opportunities in their own right.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Dec 4, 2023

China's graduates swap city dreams for farm life amid jobs crisis

As the world’s second-largest economy slows, young people are bearing the brunt of an unemployment crisis that’s leaving one of five of them jobless.
Evergrande has become a poster child for China’s property crisis since the builder defaulted two years ago. It reported a combined loss of $81 billion in 2021 and 2022.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 4, 2023

Evergrande winding-up hearing in Hong Kong adjourned again

The world’s most-indebted property developer now has eight weeks to convince offshore bondholders to agree on a restructuring.
Pro-democracy activist Agnes Chow is released in June 2021, after serving nearly seven months in prison for her role in Hong Kong's 2019 anti-government protests.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 4, 2023

Prominent Hong Kong activist Agnes Chow flees to Canada

Chow, who was jailed for months in a crackdown on pro-democracy activists, cited her physical and mental health as reasons for not returning to the city.
South Korea's President Yoon Suk-yeol arrives for a State Banquet at the Guildhall, in London on Nov. 22.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Dec 4, 2023

South Korea's Yoon picks Choi Sang-mok to spearhead economy

Choi will need to maintain economic momentum ahead of elections next April, which will determine the legislative support level for a number of bills.
Bitcoin’s revival from the 2022 crypto crash has weathered a U.S. crackdown that put Sam Bankman-Fried behind bars for fraud at FTX and handed top crypto exchange Binance and its founder Changpeng Zhao rap sheets and big fines.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 4, 2023

Bitcoin hits $40,000 level for the first time since May 2022

The token added as much as 2.9% to reach $40,867 and was just shy of that mark Monday in Singapore, taking its 2023 jump to 146%.
The Bulls' court is painted red for their NBA In-Season Tournament game against the Nets at the United Center in Chicago on Nov. 3.
BASKETBALL
Dec 4, 2023

New in-season tournament delivering early returns for NBA

The NBA In-season Tournament was established to add spice to the early part of the season.
Shein, a Chinese-founded online fast fashion platform, has filed to go public in the U.S. in what could be one of the world’s biggest IPOs.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 4, 2023

Chinese are making a killing everywhere but in China

China's companies are racing to reap the benefits of entering the U.S., while also running away from a crowded and competitive local market.
A BMW electric vehicle is charged at a charging station in Drogenbos, Belgium, in November.
BUSINESS
Dec 4, 2023

EU's electric dreams short-circuited by EV charging gridlock

The process for setting up a fast EV charging station has risen to an average of two years from six months in the last few years.
The graphics processing units made by U.S.-based Nvidia dominate the market for artificial intelligence.
BUSINESS
Dec 4, 2023

Nvidia CEO says he will try to prioritize Japan for AI processors

Japan is rushing to rebuild its once world-leading semiconductor infrastructure and catch up on the development of AI technology.
A man talks on the phone during COP28 in Dubai on Monday.
BUSINESS
Dec 4, 2023

Japan, France back plan to boost climate lending with IMF reserves

Multilateral development banks say they can bolster climate finance in developing markets by leveraging the IMF's Special Drawing Rights.
Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 2.3% in November from the prior year in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 5, 2023

Tokyo inflation cools to slowest pace in over a year

The development supports the Bank of Japan’s view that it should continue to be cautious about a tightening of policy.
Big Japanese banks are now training a generation of professional front-line staff who have little experience with rising interest rates.
BUSINESS
Dec 5, 2023

Staff at Japan's banks scramble to adjust to rising interest rates

Many younger employees have no expertise in dealing with the vagaries of a traditional inflationary environment.
The MP Materials rare earth open-pit mine in Mountain Pass, California, in January 2020. Western startups are focusing their attention on the process of refining rare earths — some of them pivoting from mining — that China has spent the past 30 years mastering.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 5, 2023

Western startups seek to break China's grip on rare earths refining

The companies are looking for faster, cleaner and cheaper ways to process the minerals that are critical for billions of electronic devices.
Kei Umeda, CEO of Mizuho Trust & Banking, speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Nov. 27.
BUSINESS
Dec 5, 2023

Mizuho sees firms scrambling to meet TSE's capital efficiency call

In January the Tokyo bourse will start publishing a list of companies that have disclosed action plans in line with its call to improve use of capital.
Starbucks' stock has fallen for the past two weeks amid concern about "still-slow China data” and sales trends, according to one analyst.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 5, 2023

Starbucks heads for record losing streak as sales concerns mount

An 11-day stock slump has erased 10% of the coffee giant's market value, or nearly $12 billion.
SoftBank has agreed to buy a majority stake in Irish software developer Cubic Telecom for around €473 million.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 5, 2023

SoftBank buys majority stake in Irish car software developer

SoftBank will acquire 51% of Cubic Telecom, which provides a platform for automakers to update software functions in cars globally and in real time.
BUSINESS
Dec 6, 2023

Christmas cake prices jump 7.8% in Japan

According to a survey by Teikoku Databank, prices of Christmas cakes measuring 15 centimeters in diameter average ¥4,468.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 6, 2023

Satellite imagery startup iQPS surges 82% in Tokyo debut

The stock opened at ¥860 per share versus its IPO price of ¥390, with trading delayed by nearly five hours due to a glut of buy orders.
Workers collect recyclable garbage including plastic bottles on World Environment Day in Tokyo in June 2020.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 6, 2023

New solutions tackle Japan’s waste problem at its core

Issues like the plastics and climate crises seem insurmountable — until we apply "systemic design," as several Japanese initiatives are showing.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni
WORLD / Politics
Dec 7, 2023

Italy withdraws from China's Belt and Road initiative

The long-expected decision was quietly communicated to Beijing three days ago without any official announcement.
Members-only Japanese sushi restaurant Sushi Namba and jazz bar lounge Listening Room will open in Miami next summer.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 7, 2023

Top Tokyo sushi chef brings unique flavors to Miami, members only

A $10,000 fee will give members access to monthly seats at the sushi counter, as well as the bar and jazz lounge.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak greets Rwandan President Paul Kagame at Downing Street in London on May 4.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 7, 2023

Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda bill seeks to waive some human rights law

Deportation plan to deter asylum-seekers from France is one of his key pledges to U.K. voters ahead of polls that he must call in 14 months.
Chinese fast-fashion upstart Shein has excelled with its offering of $9 hoodies and other bargain-basement apparel.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 7, 2023

Amazon targets Shein with fee cuts for cheap apparel sellers

Rare move by U.S. e-commerce giant shows its intent of muscling into Chinese fast-fashion upstart's territory.
Workers organize used clothing for packaging at a warehouse near Barcelona on Aug. 1.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Dec 7, 2023

How to fix the carbon crisis in fast fashion

Positive partnerships between brands and manufacturers are crucial for the sector to achieve its net-zero goals.
A pharmacist holds a box of Novo Nordisk A/S Wegovy brand semaglutide medication.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 7, 2023

Can Wegovy fight alcoholism? For Big Pharma, this isn’t a priority

Reluctance underscores reasons why no new treatment has been approved for alcoholism in nearly 20 years.
Traffic along a highway amid heavy smog and pollution in New Delhi in November
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Dec 7, 2023

As China enjoys cleaner air, India's pollution struggle continues

Huge swaths of northern India choke on clouds of polluted air during winter as temperatures drop, winds disappear and farmers set fields ablaze.
Lawyers representing a consumer advocacy group speak to reporters on Wednesday after filing a cease and desist lawsuit against online travel agency Agoda.
BUSINESS
Dec 7, 2023

Saitama consumer group files lawsuit against travel agency Agoda

The group said the firm’s terms of service that limit it from being liable for compensation violate consumer protection laws.
Remains of a Yayoi Period building found on the former British Embassy property in Tokyo
JAPAN / Society
Dec 7, 2023

Yayoi Period village remains found on former British Embassy grounds

Despite the discovery, construction on the site is set to continue after the excavation of the area concludes in March.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks to reporters after meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the Prime Minister's Office on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 7, 2023

BOJ’s Ueda meets Kishida and discusses monetary policy stance

The meeting is likely to make BOJ watchers nervous given that the central bank made a surprise policy tweak last December after similar talks.
Spectators watch as a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off with a payload of 21 Starlink satellites from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Feb. 27.
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 7, 2023

Starlink arctic test paves way for U.S. government contracts

Smooth performance under extreme conditions makes satellite service a crucial asset in an increasingly vital area of competition with Russia and China.

Longform

The byzantine process for converting a foreign driver’s license into a Japanese one entails mountains of paperwork and significant stamina — unless you're a lucky license holder from a country or region where these requirements are waived.
Driving in Japan isn’t hard. Getting the license is.