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Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 7, 2014

Hysteric Picnic opts for cassette grooves and imperfections on 'Cult Pops'

In an age where the traditional guitar-bass-drums-vocals setup of a rock band is being eschewed in favor of more stripped-down groups using laptops and synthesizers, at first glance Hysteric Picnic may seem like it's just another band following the trend.
WORLD
Jan 7, 2014

China to give as many as five privately funded banks a chance

China will allow a batch of three to five banks funded by private investment this year to operate under a trial as part of the country's financial reforms, according to the China Banking Regulatory Commission.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 7, 2014

Will the bitcoin bite the dust?

Bitcoin was one of Oxford Dictionaries' runners-up for the word of the year for 2013. The virtual currency has received a partial blessing from the chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve. But will it bite the dust because of its volatility?
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 7, 2014

Winter is the tastiest time to visit Tsukiji fish market

January is a delicious time for local seafood, as fish naturally fatten up to survive in icy waters. A visit to Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo's Chuo Ward will give you a first-hand view of winter seasonal seafood, as well as a chance to savor it in the area's restaurants. Here's a guide on what to look...
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 7, 2014

New Tokyo travel agency to market ¥25 million tickets for space tours

Booking a tour in space is now possible in Japan thanks to the establishment of a Tokyo travel agency that deals exclusively with the above and beyond — for those who can pay the ¥25 million fare.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 7, 2014

Toyota eyes California hydrogen station network

Toyota Motor Corp., which is getting ready to sell Camry-size sedans powered by fuel cells in the U.S. next year, plans to help create a network of hydrogen stations that may include pumps at car dealers and even trash dumps.
JAPAN
Jan 7, 2014

Expanded links to Indian air force eyed amid China spat

Japan and India moved to expand air force ties before Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visits New Delhi in a few weeks, bolstering relations two months after China declared an air defense identification zone in a disputed area.
BUSINESS
Jan 7, 2014

Sharp sell-off plan to boost capital

Sharp Corp., the supplier of displays for Apple Inc.'s iPhone and iPad, plans to sell its investments in other companies and factories to extend capital boosting reforms.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / JUST BE CAUSE
Jan 6, 2014

The empire strikes back: the top issues for non-Japanese in 2013

2013 saw the enfranchised elite consolidating their power further than has ever been seen in the postwar era, while Japan's disenfranchised peoples slipped ever lower down the totem pole, becoming targets of suspicion, fear and loathing.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 6, 2014

Arrival of 'bad inflation' trend bodes ill for Japan's rebound

Price increases are prompting Japanese shoppers to buy less mayonnaise, showing the fragility of any economic rebound unless wages keep up with living costs.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2014

'Solar girl' sheds reliance on Tepco for spartan life on the edge of the grid

It was August 2012 when Chikako Fujii had one of the most memorable conversations of her life. That moment came when a bill collector from Tokyo Electric Power Co. rang her doorbell in the west Tokyo suburb of Kunitachi and told her with finality that she had an important choice to make.
Japan Times
JAPAN / AT A GLANCE
Jan 5, 2014

Bustling Shinjuku, the inn district that never sleeps

Tokyo's Shinjuku district never goes to sleep.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Jan 5, 2014

Wolf numbers surge across Europe

A twig snaps, a crow calls, but nothing moves in the dense pine forests of Spain's Guadarrama mountains. Vultures and eagles soar over the snowcapped peaks and wild boars roam the valleys below, as they have for centuries. But for the farmers who work this land, a threatening and worrying comeback is...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 4, 2014

Slippery slope to Yasukuni, Nago oiled by lucre

As with the Yasukuni story, most of the commentary on Okinawa base relocation deal focused on its contentious nature, but also like the Yasukuni story, the main impetus behind the actions reported was economic.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
Jan 4, 2014

Kagoshima volcano erupts, warplanes fly over Tokyo, exhibit shows Okamoto's bold side, Emperor dies

A terrible eruption on Sakurajima, an island in Kagoshima Bay having an active volcano, occurred yesterday at 10 a.m. Up to that time, since the night of the 10th, more than 70 earthquakes had been experienced in Kagoshima. With thundering sounds, the eruption was visible from all sides of Kagoshima.
COMMENTARY
Jan 4, 2014

China risking a debt crisis from localities

Although the odds this year of a full-blown financial crisis in China are slim, they're not nonexistent. The flash point is the burgeoning debt of localities to finance infrastructure.
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Jan 4, 2014

Back and forward: Asia in 2013; predictions for 2014

Crystal-ball gazing is a notoriously inexact science, so before getting to that, let's lessen the potential exposure to ridicule by starting with a roundup of the last 12 months' key trends and events in Asia.
Reader Mail
Jan 4, 2014

Abe looks set to reinvent a personal Japan

Regarding the Jan. 1 article "Abe's quest to revive, reshape nation rides on the economy": The headline seems turned the wrong way. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's real revival target is not Japan's consumer economy, but rather Japan's economic prowess internationally.
Reader Mail
Jan 4, 2014

Mandela's dream not fully realized

Regarding Jennifer Kim's Dec. 15 letter, "Can't see Mandela as a 'peace icon," and Jim Makin's Dec. 22 letter, "Mandela halted vengeful politics": Nelson Mandela was a great admirer of Martin Luther King Jr. In his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech (Dec. 10, 1993, Oslo), he recalled at the very end...
BUSINESS / JAPANESE PERSPECTIVES
Jan 4, 2014

Reform vows, Constitution to dog Abe in 2014

At the beginning of the new year, I would like to review the achievements of the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the challenges it faces in its second year on the economic and political fronts.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 4, 2014

How we scored on calling 2013

A year ago, we brought you an analysis of the forces that appeared likely to shape the U.S. economy, for better and worse, in 2013. So, what did we get right and what did we get wrong? And of the things we posed as open questions, what did the answers turn out to be? Here, in the interest of pundit accountability,...

Longform

An illustration features the Japanese signs for "ganbare" (good luck) and the Deaflympics, which will be held between Nov. 15 and 26.
A century of Deaf sport finds its moment in Tokyo