Search - 2022

 
 
A group of departed souls trapped in limbo tries to find closure — and finish an uncompleted movie — in Michihito Fujii’s “The Parades.”
CULTURE / Film
Feb 29, 2024

‘The Parades’: Glossy afterlife drama is no ‘After Life’

Michihito Fujii’s wistful film is less than the sum of its influences.
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 29, 2024

Japan issues fresh warning against excessive yen moves

The warning by Masato Kanda, Japan's vice finance minister for international affairs, likely reflects Tokyo's desire to prevent further falls in the yen.
Farmers shout slogans as they burn an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other ministers during a march toward New Delhi to push for better crop prices, at Shambhu Barrier, the border between Punjab and Haryana states, on Feb. 23.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 29, 2024

India's farmer protest fuels opposition hopes of denting Modi's appeal

India's beleaguered opposition parties have been searching for a narrative to counter the popular leader.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 29, 2024

Talks on easing Japan defense export rules pushed back to March

The Liberal Democratic Party and junior coalition partner Komeito failed to reach an agreement on revisions to existing restrictions on Wednesday.
What is the BOJ hoping to achieve through tighter policy? The bank's governor, Kazuo Ueda, dissented in 2000, arguing then a hike was premature — and he was right. Why the change now.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 29, 2024

Selling a rate hike during recession is tough. Good luck, Ueda.

What sounded like a statement of the obvious by Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda last week — that a country where prices are rising by 2% is, in fact, experiencing inflation — has more to it than meets the eye.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 29, 2024

Kishida apologizes over slush funds scandal at ethics committee meeting

In a rare appearance in front of the committee, the prime minister also vowed to implement political reforms in the wake of the scandal.
Prospective foreign vocational school graduates who finish education ministry-accredited academic courses will be granted “technology, humanities and international affairs” residence status intended for white-collar workers such as engineers, interpreters and designers, even if their jobs don’t necessarily relate to what they have studied.
JAPAN
Feb 29, 2024

Japan eases residency rules for foreign graduates of vocational schools

The relaxation of rules is aimed at retaining highly skilled professionals amid a chronic labor shortage.
BUSINESS
Feb 29, 2024

NTT West president to resign over customer information theft

NTT West has been slapped with administrative guidance by the communications ministry for insufficient supervising.
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers his annual state of the nation address in Moscow on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 1, 2024

NATO risks nuclear war if troops are sent to Ukraine, Putin warns

The Russian leader has reiterated that his country remains committed to the goals of its February 2022 invasion.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has upended Communist Party norms since consolidating power and installing a coterie of loyalists in 2022, marking a shift from the more collective decision-making that helped propel China’s economic rise.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 1, 2024

Xi’s one-man rule over China’s economy is spurring unrest

While the Chinese leader attempts to put the China's economy on a more sustainable footing, he is failing to convince the nation that's a good idea.
Michelin-starred tempura experiences abound in Tokyo, but some of the best of the genre can be found in the city's more down-to-earth eateries.
LIFE / Food & Drink / Top 5
Mar 3, 2024

Go old school with these affordable tempura spots

Once a plentiful dish for the poor, tempura has been dragged upward through the classes to become a dish beloved by all.
As people in the public gallery looked on at the Osaka High Court on Friday, lawyers for the appellant and respondent deliberated over evidence and confirmed the judgment date remotely.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Mar 1, 2024

Osaka High Court pioneers remote legal proceedings

Lawyers representing parties in an appeal case joined the hearing via web conferencing to argue their cases.
JAPAN
Mar 1, 2024

Japan bill would punish those who encourage unlawful gun ownership

The bill is also aimed at toughening requirements to qualify for possessing a so-called half-rifle hunting gun.
Rina Gonoi, a former Self-Defense Forces member who accused colleagues of sexually assaulting her during her time in the military, speaks during an interview in Yokohama last December.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 2, 2024

Japanese ex-soldier wins U.S. award for fight against sexual harassment

The U.S. will honor former Self-Defense Forces soldier Rina Gonoi with the International Women of Courage Award.
Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge speaks during a news conference ahead of the Tokyo Marathon on Friday.
MORE SPORTS / Athletics
Mar 2, 2024

Kipchoge pays tribute to Kiptum ahead of Tokyo Marathon

Kipchoge is preparing to compete in Sunday's Tokyo Marathon in his first race since his Kenyan compatriot was killed on Feb. 11.
Gregory May, U.S. consul general in Hong Kong, takes part in an interview in the city on Thursday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 2, 2024

Top U.S. envoy in Hong Kong warns of creeping internet curbs

In his first interview since taking up the post in 2022, U.S. Consul General Gregory May said that connectivity and data security issues are growing.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen races toward a win in the Bahrain Grand Prix on Saturday in Sakhir.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Mar 3, 2024

Verstappen cruises to 'unbelievable' Red Bull one-two in Bahrain

In a statement of emphatic superiority, the 26-year-old Dutchman came home 22.5 seconds clear of teammate Sergio Perez.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks to reporters outside the White House in Washington on Friday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 3, 2024

For Democrats pining for an alternative, Biden team has a message: Get over it.

While a new poll shows that 2 in 5 Democrats say the president shouldn't be the nominee, no one who matters to Biden is willing to suggest he step aside.
J-Power is making a AU$380.9 million bid for Australian renewable energy firm Genex Power.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 4, 2024

J-Power makes bid for Australian renewables firm Genex

The move comes as part of the Japanese company's efforts to boost its renewable energy assets.
SMBC Nikko Securities has set up an alumni organization for former employees to interact and share their experiences.
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
Mar 4, 2024

As more move midcareer, Japan firms tap former hires with alumni networks

As well as seeking business opportunities, companies also recognize the value of rehiring individuals with expertise and skills gained elsewhere.
The Fair Trade Commission will demand Nissan take measures to prevent a recurrence of unfair reductions in payments to subcontracting auto parts makers.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 4, 2024

Japan FTC to warn Nissan over payments to parts suppliers

The reductions are estimated to total about ¥3 billion for more than 30 suppliers over the past several years.
The Supreme Court decision on whether Donald Trump should be immune from prosecution for crimes committed while in office will likely come in late June, and his trial will start even later.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 3, 2024

The Supreme Court isn’t slow-walking Trump’s immunity case

The delay in the trial of former president Trump on his role in the Jan. 6 attack isn't the Supreme Court's fault, but rather the prosecution's.
Nikolai Nozdrev, who arrived in Tokyo on Sunday, succeeds Mikhail Galuzin as Russia's ambassador to Japan.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 4, 2024

Russia’s new ambassador arrives in Japan after more than yearlong absence

Moscow had left the post unfilled for over a year amid strained ties with Tokyo.
PFAS does not break down easily and remains in the body and the environment for a number of years, and is thus called “forever chemicals.”
JAPAN / Explainer
Mar 4, 2024

Japan’s food safety panel drafts intake limit for 'forever chemicals'

The report spells out the “tolerable daily intake” of PFAS through food for the first time. Here's what you need to know.
John Kerry, the U.S. special envoy on climate issues, gestures as he attends a news conference in Beijing in July 2023.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Mar 4, 2024

John Kerry bolstered U.S. climate reputation, but trust still elusive

Kerry is credited with restoring U.S. climate ties with China and courting private capital for climate action.
Soldiers during a live-fire exercise in Weiden, Germany
WORLD / Politics
Mar 5, 2024

Germany faces pressure to tighten security after Ukraine details exposed

One official described the lapses that led to the leak as expected from people who have never had security briefings but not from military officials.
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said that he recognized China's advances in development and in alleviating poverty, but urged that such policies be accompanied by reforms "to align relevant laws and policies with international human rights standards."
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 5, 2024

U.N. says China violating 'fundamental rights' in Xinjiang, Tibet

The U.N. human rights chief also asked Beijing to release rights defenders arrested under the "vague" offense of "picking quarrels and making trouble."
Broad indications are growing that Chinese President Xi Jinping is shifting away from four decades of market-oriented reforms and financial innovation. The most powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong has emphasized the Communist Party’s "centralized and unified leadership” of the sector, and pledged to build "a modern financial system with Chinese characteristics” that’s completely different from the West.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 5, 2024

China's bankers exit industry amid crackdown on ‘hedonistic’ lifestyles

Finance workers in China are rethinking their career as Chinese President Xi Jinping signals a shift away from market-oriented reform and innovation.
Japan's service sector activity expanded in February, thanks to continued strong demand for inbound tourism.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 5, 2024

Japan's service activity grows on firm tourism

Inbound tourism is an important part of Japan's economy, with annual visitor spending exceeding ¥5 trillion for the first time last year.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang chat at the end of the opening session of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 5, 2024

China sets robust economic growth goal but no big bang stimulus

Premier Li Qiang targets growth of about 5% this year but signals continued reluctance to use deficit spending for economic stimulus.

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