Search - 2003

 
 
JAPAN / TALKING SHOP
Jan 13, 2004

Prada Japan's Italian chief knows the merits of vagueness

Davide Sesia, representative director of Prada Japan Co., is on the prowl.
EDITORIALS
Jan 13, 2004

Prospects dim for wage round

Japan's economy is showing increasing signs of recovery, yet there is nothing to cheer about concerning the job situation as labor and management brace for what promises to be yet another difficult bargaining season. Once again, wage restraint will be the main theme of negotiation in spring 2004.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 12, 2004

Let the Saudis choose their revolution

SYDNEY -- In November 2003, U.S. President George W. Bush described what he termed the third pillar of America's security: "global democratic revolution." If Iraq and Afghanistan were the first "beneficiaries" of this revolution, then it seems almost certain that Saudi Arabia will feature somewhere in...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jan 11, 2004

Belle & Sebastion

Certainly the most interesting commercial success story to emerge from the British indie scene in the '90s was Glasgow's Belle & Sebastian, which contains neither a Belle nor a Sebastian but a shy singer-songwriter named Stuart Murdoch and a consortium of close friends. They garnered a dedicated underground...
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jan 11, 2004

More than transformation to a photo critic's eye

THE HISTORY OF JAPANESE PHOTOGRAPHY, edited and translated by John Junkerman. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003, 404 pp. $65 (cloth). The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, deserves kudos for sponsoring this superb slab of a book. This is certainly an impressively organized, thoughtful and comprehensive...
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 11, 2004

Japan's 'Seabiscuit' shows losers can be winners too

There are few cliches as dubious as "Everybody loves a winner." Does everybody love a winner? The fans of the Hanshin Tigers certainly don't love the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks.
BUSINESS
Jan 10, 2004

Foreign-exchange reserves at all-time high

Japan's foreign-exchange reserves hit a record high of $673.53 billion in December, rising by the biggest margin in a single year due to heavy yen-selling intervention in the currency market, the Finance Ministry said Friday.
JAPAN
Jan 9, 2004

Pollen sufferers can thank cold summer for easier 2004

Tree pollen levels are expected to be lower than average in 2004 due to the cold summer last year, according to weather information provider Weathernews Inc.
BUSINESS
Jan 9, 2004

Biometrics tieup eyed with Europe

A Japanese consortium is considering teaming up with its European counterpart to develop a unified standard for security products based on biometric technologies using face and fingerprint recognition, a source at the consortium said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Jan 9, 2004

Corolla regains best-selling car title

Toyota Motor Corp.'s Corolla regained the title of Japan's best-selling car in 2003 after a one-year absence from the top spot, even though sales fell 12.1 percent to 198,904 units, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said Thursday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jan 8, 2004

Iriki inks 2-year deal with Fighters

Right-hander Yusaku Iriki, who was traded from the Yomiuri Giants at the end of the season, agreed on Wednesday to a two-year deal with a base salary of 70 million yen plus performance-based incentives in the first year, the Pacific League club said.
BUSINESS
Jan 8, 2004

International luxury hotel chains set sights on central Tokyo market

Top foreign hotel chains have set their sights on Tokyo, betting their respective brands of high-class luxury and innovative services will shake the local hotel market out of its doldrums.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health / NATURAL SELECTIONS
Jan 8, 2004

Shedding light on dark matter

These days, you never hear people complaining that science destroys the wonder of the world. They wouldn't dare. For a beautiful example, look at what was discovered last year. A satellite -- the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) -- confirmed one of the strangest, most wondrous proposals about...
BUSINESS
Jan 8, 2004

Linux sales increase 37.5% to 2.6 billion yen

Sales chalked up by Linux under licensing agreements totaled some 2.6 billion yen in Japan in 2003, up a sharp 37.5 percent from the previous year, a high-tech research firm said Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jan 8, 2004

Yamaha set to hit targets a year early

Yamaha Motor Co. said Wednesday it will probably achieve the sales and profit targets stipulated under its three-year business plan one year ahead of schedule in March.
BUSINESS
Jan 8, 2004

Sumitomo Trust to repay public aid

Sumitomo Trust & Banking Co. said Wednesday it will return some 200 billion yen in public funds to the government next week it received in 1999.
ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH
Jan 8, 2004

Corporate America's attack on common sense

Common sense may keep us out of harm's way and save us from terminally bad deciEsions, but a recently leaked chemical-industry memo inEsists that common sense is bad for business. Elsewhere in the corporate sector, too, common sense is increasingly seen as a dogged nuisance that hinders mindless conEsumption...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 8, 2004

Dollar now expected to hit 100 yen

The dollar fell to its lowest point against the yen in more than three years this week, prompting fast, sustained and solitary dollar-buying intervention by the Finance Ministry.
JAPAN
Jan 8, 2004

Government targets top gang leaders

The government is planning legal amendments that would make it easier for victims of gang violence to sue those in the top echelons of these organizations for damages.
JAPAN
Jan 7, 2004

Diet to convene Jan. 19, finish in time for election

This year's Diet session will start Jan. 19 and run through June 16, possibly without an extension, making it almost certain the House of Councilors election will be held July 11, ruling coalition lawmakers said Tuesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 7, 2004

Raising retirement age eases, adds strains

Isomi Suzuki believes he is one of the lucky few to be able to continue his career even after reaching age 60, the common retirement age in Japan.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2004

Sumo ranks' crime patrols also good PR

The night echoes with the heavy footsteps of sumo wrestlers, moving slowly and casting sharp glances, but their opponents this time will not stand before them under the bright lights of the elevated clay "dohyo" ring.
JAPAN
Jan 6, 2004

NEC caught overcharging Defense Agency 63 million yen

NEC Corp. overcharged the Defense Agency a combined 63 million yen between 1997 and 2001 in five equipment contracts, according to internal agency documents obtained Monday by Kyodo News.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 6, 2004

Mobile phone giants strive for pre-eminence in 3G market

Anticipating that third-generation services will dominate the mobile phone market within a few years, NTT DoCoMo Inc., KDDI Corp., and Vodafone K.K. are rolling out new handsets with a range of advanced 3G functions.
BUSINESS
Jan 6, 2004

Sales of new vehicles rise for first time in three years

Domestic sales of new motor vehicles, excluding minicars, rose 1.5 percent in 2003 to 4.03 million units, the first year-on-year increase in three years, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said Monday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 5, 2004

Continental chief pins airline's survival on service

HOUSTON -- "Break-even status" is the ultimate financial goal for Continental Airlines in the new year, even though there are some signs that the U.S. airline industry may finally be climbing out of its prolonged slump.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes