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Japan is the only country in the world that still enforces a same-surname rule for married couples, according to Keidanren research.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 10, 2024

Japan should let married women keep names, main business lobby says

Keidanren said in a proposal that the government should quickly present legislation allowing for surname choice to parliament.
Andy Murray plays a backhand return to Stan Wawrinka during their men's singles match on Day 1 of the French Open in Paris on May 26.
TENNIS
Jun 11, 2024

Andy Murray expected to team up with brother Jamie at Wimbledon

Three-time major winner Murray, 37, revealed in February that he intended to retire later this year.
A South Korean soldier stands guard near a military facility where loudspeakers dismantled in 2018 used to be, near the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas in Paju, South Korea, on Tuesday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 11, 2024

South Korea fires warning shots after North Korea soldiers briefly cross border

The Sunday incursion took place in an overgrown area of the Demilitarized Zone, the heavily fortified border area, and was likely accidental.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and digital minister Taro Kono attend a digitalization panel in Tokyo on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 11, 2024

Japan's parliament faces a long road to digitalization

Concerns over decorum and the possibility of the use of electronic devices being obtrusive to proceedings are among reasons cited for maintaining restrictions.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2024

Japan to stick to goal of primary budget surplus next fiscal year

The government will also continue to try to lower the ratio of debt to gross domestic product, a draft of annual policy guidelines for budget planning said.
Scottie Scheffler pumps his fist after making a putt during the final round of the Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio, on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS / Golf
Jun 12, 2024

U.S. Open field chasing Scottie Scheffler's greatness

Rory McIlroy describes Scheffler as relentless, with the American having played 14 times with only one tournament finish outside the top 10.
Fumihiko Maki was among a team who designed the 72-story 4 World Trade Center building in New York constructed after the World Trade Center collapsed in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
JAPAN
Jun 12, 2024

Renowned Japanese architect Fumihiko Maki dies at 95

The Pritzker Prize winner was considered one of the most prominent global architects of his generation.
Otowayama stable wrestlers in front of their stable. It may come as a surprise to some, but the use of ring names between wrestlers in the same stable isn’t all that common.­
SUMO / INSIDE SUMO
Jun 12, 2024

Burning questions (and their answers) new fans may have about sumo

The slow month of June is as good a time as any for our columnist to answer some of the fan questions that crop up with regularity.
The share of women in legislative, senior official and management roles increased by 1.7 percentage points from 2023 and 4.6 percentage points from 2006, according to a World Economic Forum gender equality report.
JAPAN / Society
Jun 12, 2024

Japan makes gains in political empowerment in gender equality report

Overall, Japan ranked 118th out of 146 countries in the World Economic Forum report, making it the lowest-ranked G7 nation.
This proliferation of American alliances is not tangential, but central to the foreign policy of U.S. President Joe Biden.
COMMENTARY
Jun 12, 2024

America has many allies. Maybe too many.

This proliferation of American alliances is not tangential, but central to the foreign policy of President Joe Biden.
The rates of unmarried Japanese have been rising across every age group. More than 90% of women age 30-34 were married in 1980, versus 65% now.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 11, 2024

Tokyo government's 'Tinder' is actually a good idea

The rates of unmarried Japanese have been rising across every age group. More than 90% of women aged 30-34 were married in 1980, versus 65% now.
Tomiji Suzuki (back) attends a workshop in Tokyo. The 89-year-old is now making apps for the fast-growing elderly demographic, using ChatGPT to fine-tune his skills.
JAPAN
Jun 13, 2024

ChatGPT a mentor for 89-year-old app developer

So far, Tomiji Suzuki has developed 11 free iPhone apps to help Japan's aging population.
A BYD Atto 3 electric SUV on the streets of Frankfurt, Germany, on Feb. 21, 2023
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 13, 2024

EU hits Chinese EVs with tariffs, drawing rebuke from Beijing

The move comes less than a month after the U.S. announced plans to quadruple duties for Chinese EVs.
Container ships and bulk carriers off Singapore's shores on Feb. 19
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 13, 2024

Singapore port container logjam worsens as ships avoid Red Sea

The congestion is only emerging now because it took time for the port to reach its maximum utilization level.
Harmony Korine (center-left, in orange) DJs a set with his EDGLRD crew at a Tokyo event promoting his film, “Aggro Dr1ft,” at WWW X on June 6.
CULTURE / Film
Jun 14, 2024

Harmony Korine wants us to dream movies, and he’s working on a ‘pill’ for that

Korine and his collaborators came to Tokyo to screen his new film "Aggro Dr1ft," his first visit to Japan in 17 years.
However non-Japanese fathers in Japan manage the vagaries of life abroad, many share a preference for forging ahead for the benefit of their children.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Jun 14, 2024

There’s no one-size-fits-all fatherhood for foreign-born dads in Japan

From Hokkaido to Okinawa, fathers in Japan talk getting married, raising kids and taking life as it comes.
Chinese President Xi Jinping reviews the honor guard at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing last month. China is likely to adopt limited and targeted retaliation against the European Union after the bloc unveiled tariff increases on Chinese electric cars.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 14, 2024

China likely to retaliate in targeted ways after Europe raises levies on EVs

Beijing is expected to avoid an excessive response that encourages further trans-Atlantic alignment against China.
Rafael Nadal hits a return during a match at Wimbledon in July 2022.
TENNIS
Jun 14, 2024

Nadal to skip Wimbledon to focus on Olympics

The announcement came a day after Spanish tennis chiefs said the 14-time French Open champion would team up with Carlos Alcaraz at the Games.
Opal Lee, the "Grandmother of Juneteenth," visited Japan last month shortly after receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Joe Biden.
COMMUNITY / Voices / Black Eye
Jun 14, 2024

U.S. civil rights icon Opal Lee brings her Juneteenth walk to Tokyo

Juneteenth, held on the 19th of the month, celebrates the end of slavery in the United States. Opal Lee sees it as more than an American holiday.
The International Olympic Committee's headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland
OLYMPICS
Jun 15, 2024

IOC issues first list of Russians and Belarusians eligible for Olympics

Each qualified athlete must undergo the vetting process by a three-member panel appointed by the IOC to make sure they meet eligibility criteria.
Kawasaki's Yasuto Wakizaka (center) scores a goal during a game against Urawa last month. In the J. League's current season format, player performances tend to decline as Japan's scorching summer sets in.
SOCCER / J. League
Jun 16, 2024

Why the J. League chose to shift its calendar starting in 2026

Over the past 30 years, the environment for Japanese soccer has evolved significantly and the J. League hopes the schedule shift will grow the game.
A person uses a tong with a camera and GPS system attached to pick up litter, part of an initiative to boost participation in collecting trash.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability / OUR PLANET
Jun 16, 2024

Japan’s gamified environment apps target a greener mindset

Government funding has helped drive a boom in environmental and social app development.
Imanaga pumps his fist after closing out the seventh inning against the Cardinals on Saturday at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jun 16, 2024

Shota Imanaga is becoming a star for the Cubs. How did MLB not see this coming?

Shota Imanaga, who is an early candidate for the Cy Young Award, has quickly established himself as a dynamic presence who pitches with passion and style.
Muons can penetrate dense materials, even bedrock several kilometers thick, and therefore are used for internal inspections for volcanos and pyramids, as well as the reactors at the tsunami-crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power station.
JAPAN
Jun 16, 2024

Japan team succeeds in muon reacceleration in major breakthrough

Muons have characteristics similar to those of electrons but have a mass some 200 times greater.
Durians at a roadside stand in Chantaburi, Thailand, which is by far the fruit’s biggest exporting country, on April 24. China’s demand for the large and spiky fruit is creating fortunes and reshaping parts of Southeast Asia.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 17, 2024

China’s lust for durian is creating fortunes in Southeast Asia

Last year, the value of durian exports from Southeast Asia to China was $6.7 billion, a twelvefold increase from $550 million in 2017.
Professor Hong Jin-kee poses with a bowl containing pink "meaty rice" at the Yonsei University in Seoul, where a team of South Korean scientists are injecting cultured beef cells into individual grains of rice in a process they hope could revolutionize how the world eats.
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Jun 17, 2024

'Meaty rice'? South Korean professor aims to change global protein

No animals were harmed in the creation of the dish, which looks like regular rice aside from its color.
France's Antoine Dupont runs with the ball during an HSBC World Rugby Sevens match between France and Great Britain in Madrid on June 1.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Jun 18, 2024

'Stop homophobia' in rugby, says France star Dupont

"The goal is for all players to feel good about their sexuality and to be accepted by others," the player said.
The experiences of our protagonist (Yukino Takahashi, right) and her fellow sex workers lead them to wonder if they still have some spark of humanity left in Shimpei Yamasaki’s “During the Rains.”
CULTURE / Film
Jun 20, 2024

‘During the Rains’ captures a blunt, modern glimpse of Japan’s sex industry

Yukino Takahashi’s self-immolating performance makes her character hard to like but also forces the viewer to contend with the reality of her line of work.
China's Premier Li Qiang visits Western Australia's only operating lithium hydroxide plant Tianqi Lithium Energy Australia (TLEA) in Kwinana, on the outskirts of Perth, on June 18.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 18, 2024

Chinese premier's Western Australia tour spotlights global race for critical minerals

Western Australia supplies more than half of the world's seaborne iron ore, with China its top customer.
Tuesday's shareholders meeting was held at the company’s headquarters in the city of Toyota, Aichi Prefecture.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 18, 2024

Shareholders deliver vote of confidence to Toyota and Toyoda

They stood their ground against the advice of the world’s most influential proxy advisory services urging them to reject Toyoda's reappointment to the board.

Longform

An illustration features the Japanese signs for "ganbare" (good luck) and the Deaflympics, which will be held between Nov. 15 and 26.
A century of Deaf sport finds its moment in Tokyo