Search - 2013

 
 
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 22, 2012

Abe's return could ease yen, aid exporters

The economy has shrunk almost 10 percent in the half decade since Shinzo Abe was last prime minister, as a soaring yen hollows out manufacturing. Abe's return may be exporters' best chance yet to halt the damage.
EDITORIALS
Dec 8, 2012

Bridging the pension gap

Because the government is gradually raising the age at which retirees can start receiving the kosei nenkin pension — a pension for corporate workers — it is requiring companies by law from April 2013 to re-employ in principle employees who are age 60 or older and want to continue working, until they...
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / FOOD MATTERS
Nov 30, 2012

Japan can learn from the Nordic kitchen

Food production in Japan is not in great shape. For decades, rural populations have dwindled and local farmers have been undercut by imports, at both the cheap and luxury ends of the market. Current plans to open up Japan's famously closed farming market through free-trade pacts sound like a death knell...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / JAPAN-U.S. SEMINAR
Nov 24, 2012

U.S. ties depend on Tokyo's initiative, leadership

Japan-U.S. relations during the second four-year term of U.S. President Barack Obama will depend much on the stability of political leadership in Tokyo, a leading American expert on Japan said during a recent seminar in Tokyo.
BUSINESS
Aug 24, 2012

CBO warns of significant recession if Congress doesn't act to avoid fiscal cliff

The U.S. would be plunged into a significant recession in the first half of next year if Congress fails to avert nearly $500 billion in tax hikes and spending cuts set to hit in January, congressional budget analysts said Wednesday.
EDITORIALS
Apr 12, 2012

Ill-advised hiring cuts

The Noda administration has decided to reduce the number of recruits by government ministries and agencies for fiscal 2013 by 56 percent from the fiscal 2009's level — that is lower than the 70 percent average reduction Deputy Prime Minister Katsuya Okada asked the central bureaucracy to achieve. The...
BUSINESS
Jan 7, 2012

Yamaha joins domestic motorcycle rivals in rush to up capacity in India

Yamaha Motor Co. is joining its Japanese rivals in boosting its motorcycle capacity in India, betting demand from Indians seeking personal transportation will continue.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Dec 23, 2011

Civic revamp to help lift sales 24%, Honda says

Honda Motor Co. is sprucing up its Civic sedan, which received poor reviews, after less than a year on the market as part of a plan to boost the automaker's U.S. sales by 24 percent in 2012.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Dec 18, 2011

Don't expect Japanese basketball to embrace a real, workable plan

Every few months a false sense of hope surfaces on the blogosphere and in the mainstream media, where optimists peddle the message that Japan's basketball "leaders" finally have their act together, that a new men's pro league will, ahem, finally replace the outdated, increasingly irrelevant JBL and the...
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Mar 27, 2011

Time for JBA to give up charade on merger

Under normal circumstances things move at a snail's pace within the Japan Basketball Association. So it's anyone's guess if talks between JBA officials and their bj-league counterparts will pick up anytime soon and/or if any progress will be made in the months to come for the creation of a new "top league"...
COMMENTARY
Nov 12, 2010

Solar energy boom in the American desert

SINGAPORE — In the remote deserts of the United States, a clean energy boom is under way with potentially far-reaching implications for the way future electricity is generated in the sunbelts of Asia and other regions.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Sep 23, 2010

Universities looking to go global

Fostering global human resources seems all the rage these days and several Japanese universities are jumping in, opening their doors to foreign students who aren't proficient in Japanese in a bid to snatch top-class talent from around the world.
BASKETBALL / HOOP SCOOP
Feb 20, 2010

Proposed new league will have major obstacles to overcome

To accurately describe what's been going on for several years now in this nation's pro hoop scene, I submit the following analogy:
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 15, 2010

Kan sets his sights on cutting government waste

Given the nation's snowballing deficit and sluggish growth, Deputy Prime Minister and now also Finance Minister Naoto Kan announced Thursday plans to review government spending to reduce waste and come up with policies to expand the economy.
JAPAN / COP15 COPENHAGEN SPECIAL
Dec 7, 2009

A brief history of climate talks: looking back, looking forward

Industrialization in the 19th century brought many of the benefits we enjoy in the modern world, changing the structure of society, industry and economy. But nearly two centuries later, one of the downsides of the Industrial Revolution is gaining more attention: global warming.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 30, 2023

China’s abandoned illusion of high growth

Instead of chasing rapid growth rates at a time when the world economy is sputtering, China is emphasizing job creation and macroeconomic stability.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Apr 14, 2023

Disney super fans keep the magic alive in Japan

As Tokyo Disneyland marks its 40th anniversary, influencers such as Christopher Nilghe and Yoshika Yoshida celebrate on social media.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 6, 2023

Ukraine has decimated its oligarchs, but now fears new ones

Key allies from Group of Seven nations are pressing the government in Kyiv to resume reform programs now.
PODCAST / deep dive
Mar 29, 2023

The Japanese Diet expels some GaaSyy

From running his mouth on YouTube to running for office — and now, possibly, running from the law — GaaSyy’s journey has been a wild one.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 9, 2023

Ten years on, reconstruction tax continues to stir debate

Critics have increasingly pointed out misuse of the budget, resulting in growing demands across the political spectrum for stricter criteria for allocating funds.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Mar 5, 2023

In the shadow of the Fukushima disaster, an unusual experiment in rewilding

Wild animals have been thriving and expanding their habitat around the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant since 2011, giving researchers a glimpse of nature’s resilience to radiation.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Feb 10, 2023

Burt Bacharach, whose buoyant pop confections lifted the ’60s, dies at 94

The composer's collaborations with the lyricist Hal David — “The Look of Love,” “Walk On By,” “Alfie” and many more hits — evoked a sleek era of airy romance.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 20, 2023

Speculation swirls around possible BOJ policy change

A historic accord that ties the Bank of Japan to a 2% inflation goal is approaching its 10th anniversary amid speculation it may be revised to support a change of direction.
Beyond Meat plant-based burger patties for sale at a plant-based grocery store in Hong Kong in June 2019.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 21, 2023

The coming disruption of animal production

It will be easier to persuade people to avoid meat from animals if they can eat meat and other animal products that taste like those they know, but do not require raising animals.
Reliever Shintaro Fujinami was traded from the A's to the Orioles on Wednesday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jul 20, 2023

A's trade pitcher Shintaro Fujinami to Orioles

Fujinami, 29, is in his first major league season after playing for the Hanshin Tigers in NPB from 2013 to 2022.
A theater-goer takes a photo of the promotional poster for Hayao Miyazaki’s new film, “The Boy and the Heron.”
CULTURE / Film
Jul 18, 2023

‘The Boy and the Heron’: It’s so good to be back in Hayao Miyazaki’s world

Studio Ghibli’s latest film takes viewers on one last journey to the familiar world of a master animator who has captivated audiences worldwide for decades.

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear