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EDITORIALS
Jun 18, 2015

Inbound tourism boom

The goal of having 20 million people visit Japan annually by 2020 appears to be within reach thanks to a tourism boom.
ASIA PACIFIC
May 29, 2015

U.S. hopes releasing images of Chinese island-building will spur Asian response

By releasing video of Beijing's island reclamation work and considering more assertive maritime actions, the United States is signaling a tougher stance over the South China Sea and trying to spur Asian partners to more action.
BUSINESS
May 26, 2015

Carmakers' $23 billion Mexico ventures may face snarls at ports

Carmakers from Nissan Motor Co. to Mazda Motor Corp. are churning out record numbers of vehicles in Mexico destined for consumers abroad. Yet some executives are worried that the factory hum will slow in coming years as exports get bogged down by congestion at the nation's ports.
Japan Times
JAPAN / KANSAI PERSPECTIVE
May 24, 2015

Cities outshine Tokyo on energy mix with ambitious goal for renewables

The government is preparing to announce its 'best energy mix' for 2030, but its cost projections for nuclear power and renewable energy are raising eyebrows.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 13, 2015

Underground Railroad hero Harriet Tubman wins poll to replace Jackson on U.S. $20 bill

Twenty-dollar bills could soon be known as "Tubmans" if a grass-roots campaign succeeds in persuading President Barack Obama to remove Andrew Jackson's portrait from circulation on U.S. paper currency in favor of a famous woman in U.S. history.
COMMUNITY / Issues / LAW OF THE LAND
May 10, 2015

Perfect storm of factors conspires to empty Japan

While 'empty-house syndrome' may seem like a problem mostly afflicting rural Japan, it is already an issue in metropolises such as Tokyo and Osaka, and will become more so in the years to come.
JAPAN
May 3, 2015

Mori Trust heir shows how women can shine

The daughter of real estate magnate Akira Mori fits the mold for the government's female empowerment campaign and is preparing to take over.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 30, 2015

Forty years on, a middle class emerges in Vietnam

Four decades after the reunification of Vietnam under a communist regime, an emerging middle class is reinforcing the country's re-orientation toward a market economy.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 10, 2015

Sandwiched between Yokota, Narita airspace, ever-busy Haneda looks to route some flights over metropolis

Faced with an urgent need to expand the capacity of Haneda airport ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the government is planning to break a longtime taboo: routing flights low over densely populated residential areas of the capital and its suburbs.
EDITORIALS
Apr 7, 2015

Battling the low birthrate

Government efforts to increase the nation's birthrate must be sustained over the long-term to be successful.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / ABENOMICS — THE BOTTOM LINE
Apr 6, 2015

BOJ's easing said unsustainable

The launch of aggressive monetary easing by the Bank of Japan stunned financial markets two years ago. But is it still sustainable? If not, how long can it continue?
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Mar 28, 2015

Postwar education at a vexing crossroads

In July 1995, a special edition of Aera magazine reflected on 50 years of postwar evolution. Education was among the topics covered.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 24, 2015

Russia's air corps is a powerful but fading force

The modernization of Russia's still formidable but rapidly aging air force will be a daunting task.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 17, 2015

Multiparty group to examine LGBT discrimination

A group of lawmakers on Tuesday launched a multiparty caucus to examine discrimination against sexual minorities in a move expected to further intensify debate ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Mar 12, 2015

Art Fair Tokyo seeks to educate

Art Fair Tokyo, the city's premier art showcase, is always a pleasure to experience, and I'm sure this year's event, to be held March 20-22 at the Tokyo International Forum, will have much to offer. But part of the fun of following Art Fair Tokyo is observing the constant struggle the event has to get...
COMMENTARY / Japan
Mar 7, 2015

Electricity and gas deregulation

The Abe administration has readied two bills for finalizing the deregulation of the nation's electricity and city gas businesses, but each bill comes with a rider allowing the delay of implementation if conditions aren't right for the utilities.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 5, 2015

LDP lawmaker calls for yen to strengthen to 100

The yen is too weak and is squeezing many companies with higher import costs, according to Taro Kono, a lawmaker in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democratic Party.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 24, 2015

China may be stalling out, and that's alright

China's shrinking population and the slowing of migration to cities means there are enough jobs to go around even as its economic growth slows.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Feb 7, 2015

'Everyone is different, regardless of their disability': Hirotada Ototake

Life can be rough for those who look a little "different" from others in society. You would expect no one to know this better than Hirotada Ototake, who was born without arms or legs due to a genetic disorder called tetra-amelia syndrome. Surprisingly, however, the 38-year-old says he was fortunate to...
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Feb 7, 2015

Abe acts quickly to exploit Japan's 'nightmare'

On adjacent televisions at my gym, I watched breaking news on the beheading of journalist Kenji Goto by the Islamic State group next to a "One Piece" anime segment in which fresh-faced youth defended their boat from marauding pirates. The kids routed them in a jiffy and suffered no casualties, a metaphorical...
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Jan 27, 2015

Japan's hydrogen energy hype

The clean image of hydrogen-based energy and its economic viability for Japan are much exaggerated.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 23, 2015

Okinawa to host WEF cybersecurity summit

The government will host a cybersecurity conference jointly with the World Economic Forum in Okinawa in November, Japanese officials announced at this year's annual economic conference in Switzerland.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 20, 2015

Tokyo to spend ¥45 billion on hydrogen stations, subsidies ahead of Olympics

Tokyo plans to spend ¥45.2 billion on fuel-cell vehicle subsidies and hydrogen stations for the 2020 Olympics as part of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's plan to reduce the nation's reliance on nuclear power.
EDITORIALS
Jan 10, 2015

Proactive emissions plan needed

Although Japan is the world's fifth-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, there doesn't seem to be the prospect that Tokyo will submit its COP20 emissions cut plan before the March 31 deadline.

Longform

A mushroom cloud from the atomic bombing on Hiroshima taken from a U.S. military aircraft on Aug. 6, 1945. Copying the photo without permission is prohibited.
80 years on, a Japanese American hibakusha recalls the day the bomb dropped