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BUSINESS
Oct 1, 2011

Government to boost yen intervention funds

Authorities plan to bolster funds needed to intervene in the currency market and will lengthen monitoring of foreign exchange market positions as the yen stays near postwar highs, Finance Minister Jun Azumi said Friday.
BUSINESS
Oct 1, 2011

Toyota wins dismissal in first acceleration case

Toyota Motor Corp. won dismissal of the first sudden acceleration lawsuit set for trial in California in 2013 because a federal judge determined it should have been filed in state court in Utah.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Sep 30, 2011

'Hayabusa'

When Hayabusa, a Japanese satellite sent to collect soil samples from a distant asteroid, returned safely to Earth in June 2010, many Japanese felt an excitement and pride more akin to a World Cup win than an event that, abroad, was a one-day news story to all but space geeks.
BUSINESS
Sep 30, 2011

Sparx to start hotel fund for disaster-hit areas

Sparx Group Co., Asia's second-largest hedge fund, is starting a fund that will invest in building hotels in parts of Japan devasted by the March 11 catastrophe.
Reader Mail
Sep 29, 2011

Uses of Keynesian economics

Regarding Washington Post writer Nicholas Wapshott's Sept. 24 article, "Keynes was not a 'big Keynesian' ": The appeal of Keynesian economics remains strong to various countries under various states of development. If one were to look at Britain and United States alone in the 1970s, one would be seriously...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 29, 2011

Sage of Omaha could help Obama

President Barack Obama sure has been talking about Warren Buffett's taxes a lot lately. At his speech before a joint session of Congress this month, the president said that the billionaire shouldn't pay a higher tax rate than his secretary, a point Buffett has often made. The secretary's tax rate, and...
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Sep 29, 2011

The esoteric architect: building on artistic ardor

Architecture isn't rock 'n' roll, so I've always had my suspicions of any architect whose fame seems to be on the inflated side. Although Arata Isozaki is something of a superstar in the world of Japanese architecture — and has also written interesting and thought-provoking books, such as the excellent...
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 29, 2011

The real financial rogues

The story of the latest "rogue trader" who allegedly cost his Swiss employer $2.3 billion in fraudulent trading is a marvelous one, especially since the alleged rogue, Kweku Adoboli, was praying on his Facebook page for a miracle more than a week before UBS realized that a large pot of its money had...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 29, 2011

Azari & III to get Japan sweaty

Azari & III (pronounced "Azari and third") have snagged a lot of influential supporters in the short period they've been making music together.
COMMENTARY
Sep 28, 2011

Let Greece default and live

Few things are as galling as being right too soon. Back in 1970, dissident Soviet historian Andrei Amalrik wrote a book boldly called "Will the Soviet Union Survive Until 1984?"
EDITORIALS
Sep 28, 2011

Backing off from the nuke phaseout

In a high-level United Nations meeting on nuclear safety and security held Sept. 22, Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda delivered a speech and said, "Japan is determined to raise the safety of nuclear power generation to the highest level in the world."
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 28, 2011

Who's afraid of a little class warfare?

A week ago Monday, defending his plan to raise taxes on the rich to pay for job creation, President Barack Obama said: "This is not class warfare, it's math."
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 28, 2011

Aussie pronatal policy is not a model for Japan

Since reaching a total fertility rate (TFR) of 1.57 in 1989, Japan has been deeply concerned about demographic trends and future prospects. Below replacement fertility — measured as less than 2.1 children per woman — has been a feature of Japanese demography since 1974.
JAPAN
Sep 28, 2011

Noda, Aquino agree to counter China sea claims

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Philippines President Benigno Aquino III agreed Tuesday in Tokyo to forge closer maritime security ties to resolve disputes with China in the South China Sea.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 27, 2011

Merits of a layman as Japan's defense minister

Japan has suffered from a leadership deficit since the charismatic Koizumi Junichiro stepped down in 2006.
COMMENTARY / World
Sep 27, 2011

Israel must act, not react, before it's too late

Despite their long-established relations, at least on the official level, Egypt-Israeli affairs have never faced fatal threats as they do in 2011.
EDITORIALS
Sep 27, 2011

Health side of tobacco tax

Health and welfare minister Yoko Komiyama on Sept. 9 said that the price of a pack of cigarettes should be raised ¥100 each year to around ¥700 at least and the jurisdiction of tobacco-related administration should be transferred from the Finance Ministry to her ministry.
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Sep 27, 2011

A compact guide to guidebooks on Japan

Despite the Internet revolution and resultant websites and blogs offering information about every conceivable aspect of any country you'd care to name, many people make sure a copy of their favorite guidebook is in their $500 suitcase or $5 backpack before boarding a plane.
BASEBALL / HIT AND RUN
Sep 27, 2011

Ochiai given raw deal by Chunichi despite his successful run in dugout

A few years ago, before an All-Star game at Yokohama Stadium, while most players were relaxing, then-Chunichi Dragons slugger Tyrone Woods was feverishly fielding grounders at first base hit by his manager, Hiromitsu Ochiai.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design / ON: DESIGN
Sep 27, 2011

Upgrading the ordinary

Ice-cool statements Here's a fun example of the power of design: Turning something as simple as ice cubes into a political/environmental statement.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years