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BUSINESS
Aug 14, 2004

Corporate bankruptcies continue decline into 19th month

The number of corporate bankruptcies in Japan dropped 16.8 percent in July from a year earlier to 1,151, down for the 19th straight month.
JAPAN
Aug 13, 2004

UFJ quickly inks merger pact with MTFG, awaits funds

UFJ Holdings Inc. and Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc. signed a basic accord Thursday to merge their operations in October next year to create what would be the world's biggest banking group, with assets worth 189 trillion yen.
BUSINESS
Aug 13, 2004

Nakagawa to lead delegation on India mission

Shoichi Nakagawa, minister of economy, trade and industry, said Thursday he will make a five-day visit to India beginning Aug. 24 with a delegation of Japanese business leaders to boost bilateral trade and investment.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / INDUSTRY TRENDS
Aug 13, 2004

Golf club makers try to stay ahead in long-shot war

For nonplayers, it might be hard to imagine just how much golfers desire to hit a longer shot.
COMMENTARY
Aug 13, 2004

An uphill battle for women

LONDON -- Morgan Stanley last month agreed to a $54 million out-of-court settlement to ensure that serious allegations of sexual discrimination against it did not come to trial in the United States. The bank proclaimed its innocence, but if it really had nothing to hide, why didn't it let the evidence...
BUSINESS
Aug 13, 2004

U.S. names Aichi Expo commissioner

The United States has named businesswoman Lisa Gable as commissioner general for its pavilion at the 2005 World Exposition to be held in Aichi Prefecture, the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo said Thursday.
JAPAN
Aug 12, 2004

High court clears way for UFJ-MTFG merger

The Tokyo High Court ruled Wednesday that struggling UFJ Holdings Inc. and the larger Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc. can hold merger talks to create what would be the world's largest bank in terms of assets.
JAPAN
Aug 12, 2004

High court clears way for UFJ-MTFG merger

The Tokyo High Court ruled Wednesday that struggling UFJ Holdings Inc. and the larger Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc. can hold merger talks to create what would be the world's largest bank in terms of assets.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Aug 12, 2004

Sensitive science in the race for glory in athletic pursuits

With the 28th Olympic Games about to start, who would put a bet on a white athlete winning the 100 meters? Certainly not the American writer Jon Entine. "The complete domination of the 100 meters by people of West African origin means no white man will ever again win the event. It simply won't happen,"...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 11, 2004

This charming man hits wrong note

Kikansha Sensei Rating: * * 1/2 (out of 5) Director: Ryuichi Hiroki Running time: 123 minutes Language: Japanese Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] When I taught at a boys high school in the early 1980s, I would, without fail, catch a bad chest cold in the winter and...
EDITORIALS
Aug 11, 2004

Time for diplomacy to step in

The recent Asian Cup soccer tournament, which Japan's national team won, witnessed an eruption of anti-Japanese sentiment among Chinese fans, including booing during the playing of the Japanese national anthem. The Chinese government tightened security for Saturday's final in Beijing, but anti-Japanese...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art / NEW ART SEEN
Aug 11, 2004

Artist builds from zero

Suspicious of the pervasive role of Western culture in his homeland, Katsushige Nakahashi resolved to become a "Japanese artist."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Aug 11, 2004

In love with a beautiful woman

L'Histoire de Marie et Julien Rating: * * * * (out of 5) Director: Jacques Rivette Running time: 150 minutes Language: French Currently showing [See Japan Times movie listings] Among French directors, Jacques Rivette seems to have an enduring fascination for la femme -- and that's saying...
JAPAN
Aug 11, 2004

Fischer transfer to Ibaraki signals lengthy confinement

Fugitive chess legend Bobby Fischer was transferred Tuesday from the Immigration Bureau facilities at Narita International Airport to the East Japan Immigration Center in Ushiku, Ibaraki Prefecture, his lawyer said.
COMMENTARY / World
Aug 11, 2004

Pariah regime doesn't deserve ADB aid

SUSSEX, England -- Bombers have been out again in Tashkent, Uzbekistan's capital. The bombs that went off at the U.S. and Israeli embassies and the prosecutor general's office on July 30 marked the opening of the trial of 15 men charged with setting off bombs that rocked Tashkent a year ago. The government...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 11, 2004

UA: Fluid beauty

UA is not your average pop star. She arrives at an interview in the western Tokyo suburb that is her home on her bike. In a cut-off T-shirt and long, billowing peasant skirt, she looks like a hipster mama, and after the interview in this ordinary cafe, she's off to pick up her son from elementary school....
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 10, 2004

Nuclear fuel plant not biz as usual

ROKKASHO, Aomori Pref. -- Despite safety concerns and local anger over allegations raised in July that the government hid a report showing that reprocessing spent atomic fuel costs more than burying it, officials at Rokkasho say they hope to begin uranium testing soon in preparation for the opening of...
BUSINESS
Aug 10, 2004

SMFG bid doesn't alter UFJ-MTFG plan

UFJ Holdings Inc. said Monday there is no change in its plan to integrate its operations with Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group Inc., despite Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc.'s rival merger bid.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 10, 2004

Nuclear fuel plant not biz as usual

ROKKASHO, Aomori Pref. -- Despite safety concerns and local anger over allegations raised in July that the government hid a report showing that reprocessing spent atomic fuel costs more than burying it, officials at Rokkasho say they hope to begin uranium testing soon in preparation for the opening of...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Aug 9, 2004

Art's ancient moderns

Rimpa is usually defined as an artistic tradition and style begun by Towaraya Sotatsu (years of birth and death unknown) and Hon'ami Koetsu (1558-1637), who were at work during the Momoyama and early Edo periods from the late 16th century to the early 17th century.
EDITORIALS
Aug 8, 2004

A tale of two Americans

Japan is currently playing host to two American citizens whom the United States wants returned to its custody to face criminal charges. The coincidence of their presence here has provided a tough exercise in clear thinking. Chess legend Bobby Fischer, 61, was indicted in 1992 for violating U.S. sanctions...
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Aug 8, 2004

Hosoki Kazuko in TBS's "Zubari Iu Wa Yo! and more

Fortune tellers and paranormals used to be quite popular on Japanese TV until the Aum Shinrikyo affair made people a little nervous about certain kinds of unorthodox beliefs. In the past few years, however, such TV personalities have slowly made a comeback. The most striking example is Kazuki Hosoki,...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Aug 8, 2004

All of Japan between two covers

JAPAN ENCYCLOPEDIA, by Louis Frederic, translated by Kathe Roth. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2002, 1102 pp., 48 illus., 14 maps, $59.95 (cloth). This large, beautiful and indispensable volume is a translation of "Le Japan: Dictionnaire et Civilisation," published in 1996, the year of the author's...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Aug 8, 2004

Three glorious days in musical heaven

The Fuji Rock Festival went off without a hitch or a typhoon this year. Philip Brasor, Simon Bartz, Jason Jenkins and Mark Thompson were there to bear witness.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’