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Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 16, 2016

Australia to ask China if others will get access to reclaimed South China Sea islands

Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said Tuesday she will seek clarification from China about how it intends to use reclaimed islands in the South China Sea, including whether Beijing intends to grant access to other countries.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 16, 2016

SoftBank plans record $4.4 billion buyback after share slide

SoftBank Group Corp. is prepared to spend a record ¥500 billion buying back stock after the carrier saw its shares drop to their lowest since buying Sprint Corp. in 2013.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Markets / ANALYSIS
Feb 15, 2016

Tokyo stocks leap but Japanese market at mercy of global uncertainties

Japan's economic contraction in the fourth quarter has deepened lingering uncertainty in global financial markets, which have been gyrating since the start of the year.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Feb 15, 2016

Temples putting donated snacks to good use: feeding Japan's impoverished kids

With 1 in 6 children in Japan living in a household with financial difficulties, a growing number of temples nationwide are donating snacks that they have received as offerings to impoverished youngsters.
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 15, 2016

Japan's banks unprepared for negative rates ahead of Tuesday's launch

The Bank of Japan will start charging interest on some deposits it holds starting Tuesday, but most of the nation's banks may not be ready to set negative interest rates on overnight interbank lending after Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda's surprise Jan. 29 announcement.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Feb 13, 2016

Give me chocolate: Japan's growing obsession with the 'food of the gods'

People with a sweet tooth can get a glimpse of how Charlie Bucket felt when he first stepped into Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory in Roald Dahl's popular 1964 tale by popping into Musee du Chocolat Theobroma in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward.
EDITORIALS
Feb 13, 2016

Taking aim at alcohol abuse

The government is coming up with measures to address heavy drinking, but they don't go as far as they should.
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 13, 2016

U.S. touts 'Batman' destroyer as Obama set to court ASEAN leaders

U.S. officials are looking to superheroes in their quest to preserve Asia's postwar security order in the face of an increasingly assertive China.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 13, 2016

Bank of Japan talking with global peers about turmoil in markets

The Bank of Japan has been communicating with officials around the world over turmoil in financial markets, Deputy Gov. Hiroshi Nakaso said, as stocks tumble and the yen surges.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Feb 12, 2016

Happiness is a warm farm: How home cooking is reviving rural Yamagata

It's late January in Tokyo, and a rare 6-centimeter snowfall plunges the city's famously efficient transport network into chaos. Train lines report delays of up to four hours, leaving snaking lines of frustrated commuters steaming, despite the freezing temperatures.
JAPAN
Feb 12, 2016

Tokyo's Ota Ward approves first short-term, Airbnb-style home rentals

An online travel service provider gets government accreditation to start renting out private homes on the model popularized by Airbnb.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 12, 2016

Japan's economic roller coaster is headed for another dip

After three years of Abenomics and record monetary stimulus from the central bank, the economy still cannot escape a roller-coaster cycle of expansion and contraction.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 12, 2016

Amid turmoil, housing market may get boost from refinancing rush

The Bank of Japan's adoption of negative interest rates two weeks ago hasn't provided a lasting boost to stock investors or weakened the currency, but it has spurred some optimism for the housing market.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 12, 2016

Biggest ever infectious disease survey to speed end of trachoma

Surveyors were taken hostage in Yemen, accused of being representatives of Dracula in Papua New Guinea, worked in sandstorms and temperatures of 50 degrees Celsius in Ethiopia.
ASIA PACIFIC
Feb 12, 2016

'Par for course' so no reason to doubt North Korea army chief executed: U.S.

The United States said on Thursday it had no reason to doubt reports that North Korea executed its army chief of staff, describing it as typical of Pyongyang's brutal political climate.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 11, 2016

Entering the mind of an icon in 'Steve Jobs'

With roles in films such as "300," "Inglourious Basterds" and the "X-Men" series, Michael Fassbender, 38, is no stranger to action.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 11, 2016

Heal thyself: U.N.'s WHO at crossroads; experts call for fresh focus, structure

When executive board members of the World Health Organization sat down for their annual meeting in Geneva in January, many powerful figures spoke forcefully of the need to reform the leading global authority on health and disease.
Restaurants
Feb 11, 2016

Matters of the flesh: Meat restaurants in Tokyo

BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 11, 2016

Yen surge nearly erases declines from Kuroda's 2014 easing surprise

The yen rose to about 3 percent shy of the level it was trading at before the surprise monetary easing step the Bank of Japan took in October 2014 saw it tumble. Traders are now wondering if policymakers will seek to arrest gains that threaten to undermine years of unprecedented monetary stimulus.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Feb 11, 2016

Rapidly aging Thailand tells businesses to hire more elderly

Pornsak Bowornsrisuk pulls an umbrella towards him to shield his head of thick gray hair from the blazing sunshine at the Bangkok bus terminal he manages.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 10, 2016

SoftBank profit down 88% amid Sprint struggle

SoftBank Group Corp., which is struggling to turn around its U.S. wireless carrier Sprint Corp., posted an 88 percent drop in third quarter profit.

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