Search - 2023

 
 
Rachel Accurso, in character as the internet personality Ms. Rachel, in New York on Nov. 4.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Nov 30, 2024

Ms. Rachel’s improbable journey from toddler whisperer to holiday toy sensation

A series of toys depicting children’s YouTube sensation Ms. Rachel is quickly becoming one of the hottest holiday gifts.
Lower House member Hiroaki Tabata holds a news conference on Friday in Toyama.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 30, 2024

LDP member reportedly tried to hide membership scandal

Hiroaki Tabata admitted during a news conference Friday night that his office had signed people up for LDP membership without their consent.
Former chief of staff to the U.S. secretary of defense Kash Patel speaks during a campaign rally for former U.S. President Donald Trump in Las Vegas in October.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 1, 2024

Trump picks Kash Patel to head FBI

Patel has called for stripping the FBI of its intelligence-gathering role and purging anyone who refuses to support Trump's agenda.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on the campaign trail pledged that he would make it costly for countries to move away from the U.S. dollar. And he’s threatened to use tariffs to ensure they complied.
BUSINESS
Dec 1, 2024

Trump demands ‘commitment’ from BRICS nations on using dollar

Backlash against the dollar’s dominance gained traction in 2022 when the U.S. led efforts to impose economic sanctions on Russia.
The mother of Israeli hostage Edan Alexander (L) hugs an organizer at a pro-Israel rally in New York on Oct. 6.
WORLD
Dec 1, 2024

Hamas releases video of U.S.-Israeli hostage in Gaza

Around half of the 101 foreign and Israeli hostages still held incommunicado in Gaza are believed to be alive.
A resident walks past destruction caused by Israeli bombardment in a neighborhood of Beirut's southern suburbs on Thursday, a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took effect.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 1, 2024

The Lebanon ceasefire can be leveraged for a broader deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has already said he sees the ceasefire as a pause in which to increase pressure on Hamas in Gaza and to rearm.
Takashi Inoguchi
JAPAN
Dec 1, 2024

Victims of fire at LDP lawmaker's home identified

The cause of the fire has not been determined, but the possibility of a crime is low, and it is suspected to be accidental, according to the police.
A sign at the entrance to the Vauxhall van factory in Luton, England, on Nov. 27. Stellantis plans to close the factory, and has made efforts to pin the blame on the government's mandate for more electric vehicle sales.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 2, 2024

The EV transition is leaving the U.K. auto industry behind

The country wants to be a leader in EVs but has lagged others in establishing the necessary plants and battery factories.
Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and their daughter, Princess Aiko, wave to members of the public for the Emperor's 64th birthday at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on Feb. 23. The imperial family will greet the public at the palace on Jan. 2.
JAPAN
Dec 2, 2024

Imperial family New Year's event to be held for first time in two years

Emperor Naruhito, Empress Masako and other imperial family members will greet the general public.
FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem talks with Red Bull driver Max Verstappen before the Qatar Grand Prix in Doha on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Dec 2, 2024

FIA president tells drivers to stick to racing amid questions about organization

In an interview ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix on Sunday, the Emirati suggested the drivers should stick to what they know best.
A 40-year-old house in the city of Fukuoka that has been renovated by Katitas, a company that buys up secondhand houses for resale. The company retained the house's original wooden ceilings and window frames to preserve the property's vintage look.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Dec 9, 2024

As demand rises for abandoned houses, so do cases of hidden defects

Industry experts recommend prospective buyers conduct thorough inspections before concluding transactions for akiya.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba speaks in the Lower House in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Dec 2, 2024

Ishiba questioned on political reform, social issues and the economy

The prime minister reiterated his skepticism about abolishing corporate donations to political parties.
Female company presidents are mostly found at small businesses in Japan.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 2, 2024

8.4% of Japanese companies led by women in 2024

Female presidents tend to be found at smaller companies, with 11.9% of companies with less than ¥50 million in annual sales having a female boss.
Resona's loan balance for SMEs was up 4.9% by the end of September from a year earlier, compared with just 1.1% growth in the 12 months through September 2023.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 2, 2024

Resona says inflation is boosting SME loan demand and pay hikes

SMEs make up the bulk of Resona's client base, giving the bank insight into the state of firms that account for most of the employment in Japan.
Nomura’s reputation has taken a hit after it admitted to a bond market manipulation in October and following charges brought against a former employee in November on suspicion of robbery, arson and attempted murder of an elderly couple during a customer visit.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 2, 2024

Nomura’s Japan corporate bond market rank slips after probe

Japan’s biggest brokerage saw its position fall to sixth place in November and its market share shrink to 2.1%, the latest data shows.
New Leicester City manager Ruud van Nistelrooy (center) and Chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha (left) outside the GTech Community Stadium in London before a game against Brentford on Saturday
SOCCER
Dec 3, 2024

Van Nistelrooy looks to lift Leicester's spirits

The 16th-placed club is hovering just one point above the relegation zone after three straight league defeats.
Members of the Amel Association, a Lebanese non-governmental organization, look out from their damaged branch at buildings destroyed or damaged in an Israeli strike, in Beirut's southern suburbs Hay el-Sellom neighborhood on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 3, 2024

Israel and Hezbollah exchange strikes as ceasefire violations mount

The exchanges of fire put a U.S.-brokered ceasefire between the two in an increasingly fragile position less than a week after it took effect.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda reiterated in an interview published Saturday that authorities will raise rates if the economy performs in line with projections.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 3, 2024

BOJ weighs case for first triple hike since Japan’s bubble burst

The last time the BOJ conducted three hikes in a single year was in 1989, with the third increase that year coming on Christmas Day.
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights Maria Lvova-Belova in Moscow on May 31.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 4, 2024

Putin's Kremlin planes took away Ukrainian children for adoption, report alleges

The research identified 314 Ukrainian children taken to Russia as part of what it says was a systematic, Kremlin-funded program to "Russify" them.
Trees in a forest in Nyanga, Gabon
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Dec 3, 2024

Scientists behind ‘net zero’ concept say nations are getting it wrong

Countries may be claiming carbon credits for work already being done by land and oceans — and the accounting mismatch has consequences.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman meets with French President Emmanuel Macron in Riyadh on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 4, 2024

France and Saudi Arabia planning a conference about Palestinian state

The French president said he would recognize a Palestinian state "at the right moment" and at a time "when it triggers reciprocal movements of recognition."
Masayo Ishimaru, the head of volunteer group Tanpopo no Sato, cuddles cats rescued from a pet hoarder, in the city of Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, in September.
JAPAN / Society
Dec 4, 2024

Local governments tighten rules on pet ownership as hoarding persists

Municipalities are introducing mandatory reporting requirements for owners of large numbers of pets as well as fines for non-compliance.
A line of police officers stand guard as protesters gather at the edge of Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul on Wednesday after President Yoon Suk Yeol formally lifted martial law earlier, six hours after having declared it.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 4, 2024

Yoon fights for political life as martial law repercussions reverberate

A coalition of lawmakers from six opposition parties on Wednesday submitted a motion to impeach the South Korean president, with a vote set for Friday or Saturday.
Tsutomu Hotta
JAPAN
Dec 4, 2024

Ex-prosecutor Hotta, who probed Lockheed scandal, dies at 90

He also helped decide how to distribute donations made to the Japanese Red Cross Society and the Central Community Chest of Japan after the Great East Japan Earthquake.
The Bank of Japan regularly sells government bonds with repurchase agreements to boost liquidity.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 4, 2024

BOJ sells 10-year cash bonds to ease shortage tied to futures

The BOJ owned ¥8.03 trillion of the bonds due in March 2032 as of Nov. 29, down from ¥8.23 trillion on Nov. 20.
Donna Nelson (fourth from left) with her family members. Nelson was found guilty of smuggling drugs to Japan.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 4, 2024

Australian woman given six-year sentence over Japan drug smuggling

Donna Nelson has said that she was a victim of an online romance scam and that she was not aware she was carrying luggage containing illegal drugs.
Japanese creatives, athletes and activists saw their efforts recognized on the world stage in various ways this year. At the Oscars (left) Takashi Yamazaki and his team took a prize for “Godzilla Minus One,” while later in the year Anna Sawai and Hiroyuki Sanada (center) took Emmys for their work in “Shogun.” Shohei Ohtani (right) was arguably the biggest Japanese star of the year.
CULTURE / 2024 in Review
Dec 4, 2024

Japan's soft power soared to new heights in 2024

From Oscars and Emmys to a Nobel Peace Prize, it was a year of awards and triumphs in key cultural fields.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. greet each other at a campaign event in Duluth, Georgia, in October. Kennedy, Trump’s choice for health and human services secretary, wants to purge the agency of corporate influence.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Dec 4, 2024

Trump taps team geared toward retribution and remaking of U.S. government

Trump's pick of Kash Patel to lead the FBI brought into sharper focus the president-elect's seriousness about striking back at those he believes have wronged him.
Palestinians gather at the site of an Israeli strike on a house in the central Gaza Strip on Wednesday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Dec 5, 2024

Amnesty says Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza

The human rights group said the legal threshold for the crime had been met, in its first such determination during an active armed conflict.
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the CHIPS act in Syracuse, New York, in October 2022. America is still struggling with chip self-sufficiency despite limiting China’s access to key technology.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 4, 2024

The chip war turns two

The U.S. struggles with chip self-sufficiency despite limiting China’s access to technology, while China makes strides in NAND and HBM chips despite significant barriers.

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami