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BUSINESS
May 27, 2000

Honda Motor aims to boost global output 20% by 2003

Honda Motor Co. said Friday it will raise annual groupwide car sales to 3 million in fiscal 2003, up about 20 percent from the current volume.
CULTURE / Art / CERAMIC SCENE
May 27, 2000

Sweet treats on a canvas of glaze

Though most of the world loves labels, it's hard to give one to the pottery of Norio Kamiya. Many collectors of Japanese pottery feel more comfortable if they know that this style is called Kutani or that one Arita or that this potter has won this award and exhibits at such-and-such gallery. Only after...
COMMENTARY / World
May 27, 2000

Politicians don't create jobs, people do

As Japan's leaders do battle against the ravages of deflation and recessionary conditions that grip their economy, unemployment rates are at a postwar high. Government data indicate the unemployment rate set a record high for the second consecutive month in March and now stands at 4.9 percent.
JAPAN
May 27, 2000

Green energy nearing takeoff in Japan

Movements to promote so-called green energy, such as wind and solar power, are gaining momentum in Japan as opposition to the use of nuclear power increases following last year's fatal nuclear accident and rising pressure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
JAPAN
May 26, 2000

Taiwan demands apology, redress for war sex-slaves

A group of Taiwan legislators made a request Thursday to their Japanese counterparts that Japan pass an opposition-proposed bill that would offer apologies and redress to former sex slaves of the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II.
BUSINESS
May 26, 2000

TSE aiming to be Asia's top bourse

The new president of the Tokyo Stock Exchange said Thursday he will push to make the Tokyo stock market one of the core markets in the world, ahead of other Asia exchanges.
JAPAN
May 26, 2000

Billions in aid eyed for foreign students

HISANE MASAKI Staff writer The government and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party are considering creating a multibillion yen fund using low-interest yen loans to provide financial aid to foreign students in Japan, according to government and LDP sources.
CULTURE / Music / PLAY BUTTON
May 26, 2000

Indie supergroup likes it fun, dumb -- and loud

Walk into any "live house" in Tokyo, and unless you are still hitting your college textbooks or just exiting puberty, you are apt to be the oldest person there.
COMMENTARY
May 26, 2000

No time for anachronisms

Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori's controversial remark that Japan is "a divine nation centering on the Emperor" reminded me of a group of people I saw at Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine, which is dedicated to Japan's war dead. As a veteran who survived the battle of Iwo Jima, I occasionally visit the shrine with...
JAPAN
May 25, 2000

Just 29.6% back Mori's Cabinet

A mere 29.6 percent of voters support Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori's Cabinet, according to a Kyodo News public opinion poll released Wednesday, the second worst initial support rate for a Cabinet since 1974.
BUSINESS
May 25, 2000

Firms to offer cell-phone shopping

Fujitsu Ltd., DDI Corp. and Citigroup of the United States jointly announced Wednesday in Tokyo that they have developed what they claim is the world's first shopping settlement system for smart cellular phones.
BUSINESS
May 25, 2000

Three shipbuilding firms in talks on 350 billion yen alliance

is planning comprehensive talks with Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. and Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co. on a major shipbuilding tieup, industry sources said Wednesday. The alliance, which would have some 350 billion yen in combined sales, would be Japan's largest shipbuilding union, outperforming...
LIFE / Food & Drink / WINE WAYS
May 25, 2000

Winding down the vine along Austria's Danube

Can't you just see yourself, on a ship cruising the Danube from one charming Austrian wine town to another, sipping their world-class wines while wondering how you ever got so lucky? This is a possible dream, the more so because the Danube and many wine towns it connects -- Krems, Spitz, etc. -- are...
CULTURE / Art
May 25, 2000

Draw the bow, ride and speak the truth

You could argue that in this age, we look to movies to preserve our traditions. But it begs the chicken and egg question: Where does the filmmaker go to authenticate the details?
JAPAN
May 24, 2000

Opposition plans no-confidence motion

Four opposition parties agreed Tuesday to form a united front and submit a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori's Cabinet in the near future.
LIFE / Food & Drink / KISSA KULTUR
May 24, 2000

Fresh or aged, the coffee is kicking at Satei Hato

On a nondescript side street, a short walk from Shibuya Station's jangling cell phones and glaring white lipstick, Satei Hato first catches your eye with the dramatic vases and fresh flowers that grace its entrance. Intrigued, you discover a space much larger than you anticipated, filled with the warmth...
CULTURE / Stage
May 24, 2000

Dervish dancing to oneness

The mystical tradition of Sufism is little known outside the Muslim faith, yet all people, regardless of religious background or inclination, can benefit from its methods for developing unity in one's body, mind and spirit.
SOCCER / J. League
May 23, 2000

Troussier names team for Morocco tournament

Japan manager Philippe Troussier on Monday called up 26 players for the Hassan II International Cup (June 4-6 in Morocco), including the surprise pick of Vissel Kobe defender Keiji Kaimoto in place of injured Jubilo Iwata defender Toshihiro Hattori.
BUSINESS
May 23, 2000

Sanwa, Tokai, Asahi megabank taking shape

The organizational structure of the financial group to be formed in April through the integration of Sanwa Bank, Tokai Bank and Asahi Bank will be finalized by September, Sanwa Bank President Kaneo Muromachi said in a recent interview.
BUSINESS
May 23, 2000

Need for reform cited by business

Accelerating regulatory reforms and reducing telecommunications costs are necessary to better utilize information technology, a gathering of business leaders told the government Monday.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
May 23, 2000

Basho, a man for all seasons

REDISCOVERING BASHO: A 300th Anniversary Celebration, edited by Stephen Henry Gill & C. Andrew Gerstle. Kent: Global Oriental/Global Books, 1999, 168 pp., 14.95 British pounds. During the 300 years since his death, Basho has turned into Japan's most famous poet, the personification of haiku culture...
BUSINESS
May 23, 2000

Market focus turning to corporate profits

The Tokyo stock market is turning its attention to corporate earnings now that the highly anticipated U.S. Fed policy meeting is over.
COMMENTARY / World
May 23, 2000

Filling in the gaps of a Japan-North Korea deal

Suspense is growing over whether the first North-South Korea summit will be held in June as scheduled. It has obscured ongoing Japan-North Korea talks on diplomatic normalization. Japanese public attention is focused on the alleged abduction of a dozen Japanese by North Korean agents. It is anybody's...
BUSINESS
May 22, 2000

Ishihara tax reflects paralysis caused by national tax scheme

The new size-based tax on big banks that has been introduced by Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara is causing major repercussions and prompting Osaka Prefecture to consider a similar tax.
EDITORIALS
May 22, 2000

China's hope, Beijing's anger

Saturday was a historic moment in Chinese history. For the first time in that country's long past, the leader of the opposition party took power democratically and peacefully. The inauguration of Mr. Chen Shui-bian as president was celebrated -- and feared. The government in Beijing has made it clear...

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight