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Matt Boyle of the Greater Manchester Police speaks to reporters after missing teen Alex Batty returned to the U.K. on Saturday.
WORLD
Dec 17, 2023

British teen Alex Batty arrives in U.K. six years after vanishing

The teen was found in the middle of the night by a delivery driver after he had walked along a road for four days.
Naomi Osaka in action at the Pan Pacific Open in Osaka in September 2019.
TENNIS
Dec 17, 2023

'Superstar' Osaka's return a boost for WTA, top coach says

The four-time Grand Slam champion last played a WTA tournament at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in late September 2022.
From left: Masashi Matsuyama, vice president of Nissan and president of Nissan (China) Investment, Takao Asami, senior vice president of Nissan, and Rika Kiritake, vice president of Nissan, hold a news conference at Tsinghua University in Beijing on Sunday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 17, 2023

Nissan to export China-developed EVs to global markets

The firm is considering exporting internal combustion engine vehicles and upcoming electric cars manufactured and developed in China to overseas markets
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda, who took office in April, has been considered a skeptic of negative interest rates.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 17, 2023

One small step for BOJ. One giant leap for the yen.

Japan can hold off on undoing negative interest rates
Smoke rises from damaged buildings in the Gaza Strip on Friday. Washington has appealed to Jordan, Egypt and Gulf states to persuade Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to pursue institutional reforms with urgency to prepare for post-war Gaza.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 18, 2023

U.S. wants overhauled Palestinian Authority to run Gaza after Hamas

Washington considers the Mahmoud Abbas-led administration as the the only realistic post-war solution despite its unpopularity.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he was against banning abortion, but that terminations were against state interests.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 18, 2023

'Give birth to more soldiers': hard-line Russia turns on abortions

Over the last few months a flurry of regions have rushed to restrict abortions in private clinics, yielding to demands from the Russian Orthodox church.
A woman who is against the proposed new constitution holds up a banner as she reacts to results of the referendum on a new Chilean constitution, in Santiago on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 18, 2023

Weary Chileans reject second proposed constitution

With 99% of votes counted in the referendum, 56% rejected the text while 44% backed the document.
A worker inspects semiconductor chips at a chip-packaging plant in Ipoh, Malaysia, in 2021. Malaysia currently accounts for 13% of the global market for semiconductor packaging, assembly and testing.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 18, 2023

Chinese firms look to Malaysia to assemble high-end chips

Dearth of advanced chip-packaging services in China leads firms to venture abroad amid U.S. sanctions.
A view of the city of Ayodhya, India
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Dec 18, 2023

Temple promised by BJP transforming Indian city but some miss out

Laborers are finalizing a $6 billion infrastructure facelift in Ayodhya that is igniting an economic boom and driving up land prices.
Israeli soldiers operate in the Gaza Strip amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in this handout picture released on Thursday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 18, 2023

Israel opens aid crossing to Gaza while stepping up bombardment

Hopes flickered at news that Israel may have spoken with Qatar, one of the mediators of an earlier ceasefire.
A pair of wolves carved from wood exhibited at Mitsumine Shrine’s museum in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife / Longform
Dec 15, 2023

In praise of wolves

Premodern Japan's reverence of wolves mirrors its close bond with nature, a state eventually disrupted by the ecological impact of industrialization.
Market players see the yen rallying next year as the Bank of Japan exits the world’s last negative interest rate regime and its global peers cut borrowing costs.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 18, 2023

2023's big currency flop is top pick for year ahead, again

The BOJ's expected unwinding of its ultraeasy monetary policy and the prospects of lower borrowing costs elsewhere set the stage for the yen to rebound.
F-16s will help Kyiv address a problem that has persisted from the start of the invasion in February 2022: Russia’s more modern combat aircraft have been difficult for Ukraine’s military to counter with its own aging fighters.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 18, 2023

How F-16 fighter jets could reshape Ukraine's aerial battlefield

Russia’s more modern combat aircraft have been difficult for Ukraine’s military to counter with its own aging fighters.
Kokusai Electric CEO Fumiyuki Kanai foresees sustained investment in China and plans to increase staff there.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 18, 2023

Japan’s Kokusai aims to build on 66% rally as China demand booms

The producer of chip fabrication equipment will enlarge its Chinese footprint to tap the growing market, according to CEO Fumiyuki Kanai.
Children dressed as Chinese Red Army soldiers in front of a statue of Mao Zedong at the Revolution Museum in Jinggangshan, China, in 2021
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 18, 2023

The CCP equates its ideology with patriotism

A new law on patriotic education will take effect in China in 2024, forcing a narrow, jingoistic interpretation of nationalism.
The Galaxy Leader cargo ship is escorted by Houthi boats in the Red Sea in this photo released on Nov. 20.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 19, 2023

U.S.-led force to patrol Red Sea in response to Houthi attacks

Participating countries led by the United States include the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Seychelles and Spain.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (right), Finland's Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen (left) and Finland's Defense Minister Antti Hakkanen sign a defense cooperation agreement in the Treaty Room of the U.S. State Department in Washington on Dec. 18.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 19, 2023

Finland bolsters military ties with U.S. after Putin warning

The Defense Cooperation Agreement formalizes greater ties with the United States, including joint training of forces and military interoperability.
Apple Watch Ultra 2 devices displayed in Los Angeles. Apple said on Dec. 18 it will stop selling some of its smartwatch models in the United States while it fights a patent battle over technology for detecting blood oxygen levels.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 19, 2023

Apple plans rescue for $17 billion watch biz in face of U.S. ban

If the ban holds, Apple is working on a range of legal and technical options.
BUSINESS
Dec 19, 2023

Japan’s travel industry urges people to get their mighty passports

Japan’s passport gives visa-free entry to 192 global destinations, according to the latest Henley Passport Index.
A volcano spews lava and smoke as it erupts in Grindavik, Iceland, on Monday.
WORLD
Dec 19, 2023

Volcano erupts near evacuated town in Iceland

The eruption near capital Reykjavík has not affected flights in the country's main international airport.
Customers browse through items sold as part of the Uniqlo Pre-owned Clothes Project at the brand's Harajuku store in Tokyo in October.
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 19, 2023

Japan revisits used garments as inflation adds to fashion appeal

Awareness of the sector's huge environmental impact has yet to spark much interest in secondhand options in the world third-biggest clothes market.
A screenshot of the website for "The One Piece"
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Dec 19, 2023

'One Piece' series to be remade on Netflix

Titled "The One Piece," the show is set to be released on streaming services. The release date is yet to be determined.
JAPAN
Dec 19, 2023

Japan unveils Osaka Expo costs

The government will bear ¥164.7 billion in direct expenses based on the latest estimate for venue construction costs.
An apartment block that was heavily damaged by a Russian missile strike in Dnipro, Ukraine, on Jan. 18, 2023. Housing, transportation networks and various types of other infrastructure facilities across the nation have suffered substantial damage in the wake of Russia's invasion.
JAPAN
Jan 2, 2024

Japan sharing reconstruction lessons with Ukraine

Ukrainian officials have reportedly said reconstruction efforts will draw inspiration from successful examples in Japan.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Chinese leader Xi Jinping meet in Hanoi on Dec. 13.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 18, 2023

Everyone is trying to woo Vietnam. Why Hanoi’s ‘bamboo policy’ works.

It makes sense to court Vietnam, one of the region’s most dynamic economies. This year, it is expected to post about 5% growth, better than many others.
The government reiterated that the recovery in capital investment appeared to have stalled, while industrial production showed signs of picking up.
BUSINESS / Economy
Dec 19, 2023

Japan ups assessment of business mood and sticks to view on economy

In a report, the Cabinet Office said the economy was "recovering moderately although some areas stalled recently."
Former U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks during a presidential campaign rally at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center in Reno, Nevada, on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 20, 2023

Trump ineligible for ballot, Colorado Supreme Court rules

The case centers on a post-Civil War-era provision of the U.S. Constitution that bans insurrectionists from holding public office.
A Russian Air Force Tupolev Tu-160 strategic bomber
WORLD / Politics
Dec 20, 2023

Putin says Russia’s nuclear arsenal is near fully modernized

The proportion of modern weaponry in its nuclear forces this year "has been brought to 95% and in the naval component almost 100%,” he said.
BUSINESS
Dec 20, 2023

Japan’s post-pandemic tourists shift spending to crafts and jewelry

Average spending on traditional handicrafts per visitor was ¥13,338 ($92) in the July-September quarter, up 80% from the same period in 2019.
Ukrainian refugees who were flown to Japan by the Foreign Ministry arrive at Haneda Airport in Tokyo in April 2022. 
COMMENTARY / Japan
Dec 20, 2023

Moving beyond ‘checkbook diplomacy’: Japan’s changing refugee policy

Japan's stance on admitting refugees appears to be changing amid greater global engagement by Tokyo.

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