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The yen traded in the 143 range against the dollar on Monday, a three-week high.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 26, 2024

Dollar sinks against the yen, hovers near 2½-year low to sterling

The U.S. dollar also hovered near its lowest in 13 months against the euro.
A store clerk tries to cool things down in front of their shop by spraying a hose.
BUSINESS / Economy / Longform
Aug 26, 2024

Is extreme weather changing the way Japan shops?

Intense heat and an increase in storms, by-products of a changing climate, are altering consumer behavior.
Novak Djokovic said the players who complained about the lack of transparency in the Jannik Sinner case made a valid point.
TENNIS
Aug 26, 2024

Novak Djokovic calls for 'clear protocols' in response to Jannik Sinner doping case

"I understand the frustration of the players is there because of lack of consistency," the 24-time Grand Slam champion said.
The Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani runs the bases after hitting a two-run homer against the Rays during the fifth inning at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Saturday.
BASEBALL
Aug 26, 2024

Shohei Ohtani throws from mound for first time since elbow surgery

Ohtani has not pitched since August 2023.
An ISIS flag hangs in the bombed-out remains of a palace that militants used as a headquarters in Mosul, Iraq, in 2017.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 26, 2024

Islamic State supporters turn to AI to bolster online support

Digital experts say groups like IS and far-right movements are increasingly using AI online and testing the limits of safety controls on social media platforms.
England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson at a news conference in London in September 2002. Eriksson died on Monday at the age of 76.
SOCCER
Aug 27, 2024

Soccer world pays tribute as 'true gentleman' Eriksson dies age 76

The former England manager died surrounded by his family after revealing in January he had "at best" a year to live.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius inspects Leopard II tanks that were due to be supplied to Ukraine at a military facility in Augustdorf, Germany, in February 2023.
COMMENTARY
Aug 27, 2024

Ukraine has a Germany problem again. Here’s how to fix it.

Kyiv’s Kursk operation was aimed less at the battlefield than at Berlin and other allies.
Remnants of the first Moji station complex are located near the current Mojiko Station in the city of Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 27, 2024

Kitakyushu clashes with academics over Meiji Era remains

The city wants to proceed with plans to build a five-story complex to house several aging public facilities on the site of the original Moji railway station.
Freed Israeli hostage Qaid Farhan Alkadi talks on the phone after arriving for a checkup at the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheva. The Israeli military said its forces rescued Alkadi on Tuesday after a "complex operation."
WORLD
Aug 28, 2024

Israel rescues hostage taken on Oct. 7 from a Gaza tunnel

A 52-year-old Bedouin Arab Israeli from the town of Rahat was found by special forces in a tunnel in the southern Gaza Strip.
People hold the Paralympic torch at the entrance of the Channel Tunnel in Coquelles, France, on Sunday.
PARALYMPICS
Aug 28, 2024

IPC president hails Paris Games as turning point for Paralympics

More than 1.75 million tickets had been sold by Friday ahead of Wednesday's opening ceremony.
NFL Commissioner  Roger Goodell at a news conference in January 2020
MORE SPORTS / Football
Aug 28, 2024

NFL allows private equity firms to invest in teams

The owners of the National Football League have decided to allow some private equity firms to buy up to a 10% stake in a team, the NFL said on Tuesday.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris meets with Chinese leader Xi Jinping before the APEC Leaders' Retreat in Bangkok in November 2022.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 28, 2024

How a Harris-Walz administration might handle Asia policy

While a Harris-Walz administration would likely avoid unilateral economic measures against China, it would prioritize human rights more in the relationship.
Quokkas have been dubbed the "happiest animal in the world."
JAPAN
Aug 28, 2024

Saitama zoo seeks donations for 'smiling' quokkas

The Saitama Children's Zoo in Higashimatsuyama is the only place in Japan where people can see quokkas.
Vehicles are stranded on flooded road on Thursday following heavy rains from Typhoon Shanshan in the city of Tamana, Kumamoto Prefecture.
JAPAN
Aug 29, 2024

Heavy rain batters Japan after Typhoon Shanshan makes landfall in Kyushu

Later Thursday, Shanshan was downgraded to a severe tropical storm, but it was still bringing heavy rain and strong winds to the region and beyond.
A member of the Self-Defense Forces wipes away sweat as he conducts a search and rescue operation at a landslide site caused by heavy rain in Kumano, Hiroshima Prefecture, on July 11, 2018.
ENVIRONMENT / Boiling Point
Aug 29, 2024

Can Japan handle a heat wave and natural disaster at the same time?

Recent typhoons and the Nankai Trough megaquake alert have put the spotlight on how the country would deal with a dual disaster.
A satellite image from Wednesday shows Typhoon Shanshan south of Kyushu as the storm was rapidly intensifying.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Aug 30, 2024

From tropical storm to 'violent': Japan’s typhoon classifications

Japan's system differs from that used for hurricanes, and there also differences in how the storms are discussed in English versus Japanese.
Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown (left), Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele (second left), Tongan Prime Minister Hu'akavameiliku (second right) and Pacific Islands Forum Secretary-General Baron Waqa, announce the Pacific Resilience Facility decision at a meeting in Nuku'alofa, Tonga, on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Aug 31, 2024

Pacific bloc scrubs Taiwan from document after China complaint

A new joint declaration by Pacific leaders was reissued Saturday morning after China slammed an earlier version as a "mistake" that "must be corrected."
Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito speaks during a committee meeting in Kobe on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 31, 2024

Embattled Hyogo governor to face no-confidence motion

For its passage, the no-confidence motion needs to be supported by three-quarters or more of assembly members present at a meeting for voting.
Coco Gauff during her match against Emma Navarro on Day 7 of the 2024 U.S. Open tennis tournament in Flushing, New York, on Sunday
TENNIS
Sep 2, 2024

Holder Gauff ousted by Navarro in U.S. Open fourth round

Navarro's victory moved her into a second Grand Slam quarterfinal where she will play Spain's 26th seed Paula Badosa.
Myanmar Prime Minister and State Administrative Council Chairman Min Aung Hlaing said the census data collected from Oct. 1 to 15 will be used to hold a general election next year.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 2, 2024

Myanmar junta announces census for promised 2025 election

Opponents say the census in the first half of October is a ploy by the junta to collect information from the people that they will use to terrorize them.
A welcome message for Pope Francis is displayed on an electric billboard at a roundabout in Jakarta on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Sep 3, 2024

Pope heads to Indonesia as the first stop of his four-nation tour

The tour — the longest and farthest of his 11 years leading the worldwide Catholic Church — will test Pope Francis' increasingly fragile health.
Vladimir Putin meets with schoolchildren in Kyzyl, Russia, on Monday, in a photo released by Russian state media.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 4, 2024

Putin is spending big to shape Russia’s youth in his own image

At some universities in Russia, students attend compulsory courses in the "fundamentals of Russian statehood” that were introduced last year to promote patriotism.
Weighting the total number of medals won by each country by value — three points for gold, two for silver and one for bronze — reveals that the 12 countries with the highest medal count in Paris are all advanced economies.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 4, 2024

The geopolitics of Olympic medals

A larger population offers a broader talent pool, and economic development supports better sports infrastructure and policies.
Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara (left), Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong (center left), Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa (center right) and Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles gather for their two-plus-two meeting in Queenscliff, Australia, on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
Sep 5, 2024

Japan and Australia look to closer cooperation to deter China

The quasi-allies have committed to coordinate their national security policies “more closely than ever before.”
One problem with Japan’s investments in African infrastructure compared to other countries is that its projects often lack long-term sustainability and alignment with local development plans, limiting their impact. 
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 5, 2024

Is Japan’s involvement in Africa’s development outdated?

Japan's traditional aid approach is seen as too transactional and insufficiently addressing Africa's broader development challenges.
By 2018, the number of children registered for adoption had dropped to around 15,000, down from about 44,000 in 2009, according to official statistics.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Sep 6, 2024

China stops foreign adoptions, ending a complicated chapter

The ban raises questions for many of the hundreds of families in the United States who were in the process of adopting children from China.
A building housing the Tokyo District Court's Tachikawa branch in the city of Tachikawa
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 6, 2024

21-year-old gets 23 years over robbery-murder in western Tokyo

The case was part of a high-profile series of robberies across Japan allegedly committed by the same group.
Gabon President Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema waves as he arrives at Beijing Capital International Airport ahead of the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in Beijing on Sep. 1.
WORLD
Sep 7, 2024

U.S. pitches deal to thwart Chinese military base in Africa

The U.S. is assembling an economic and security assistance package for Gabon in a bid to prevent China from establishing a military footprint there.
The Liberal Democratic Party's presidential race is expected to have a record number of candidates.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Perspectives
Sep 8, 2024

Unpacking Japan’s messy leadership election

With so many candidates and old rules gone, brace for the most unpredictable LDP race in ages
Aryna Sabalenka celebrates with the trophy after winning her first U.S. Open title in New York on Saturday.
TENNIS
Sep 9, 2024

Aryna Sabalenka savors U.S. Open win after roaring back from tough year

Sabalenka dropped only one set on the road to the final and downed American Jessica Pegula 7-5, 7-5.

Longform

In 2020, 38% of all households were single-person. That figure is projected to rise to 44.3% by 2050.
The rise of AI companionship in a lonely Japan