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Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jul 8, 2001

Love town where time stands still

OSAKA -- Osaka Mayor Takafumi Isomura repeatedly says he wants to turn the city into an international tourist destination. But camera-toting foreigners snapping pictures of Tobita, one of its oldest and most famous neighborhoods, are probably not what either he or the local business community have in...
COMMUNITY
Jun 30, 2001

The Three Sisters Inn: owned by three sisters

It is not as if Kikue, Sadako and Terumi Yamada have not been interviewed before. Not so long ago it was for The New York Times, which really put them on the map.
BUSINESS
Jun 29, 2001

Global sales, restructuring fuel Nissan's revival

Two of the mostly eagerly awaited financial reports this year were those of Nissan Motor Co. and Snow Brand Milk Products Co.
BUSINESS
Jun 29, 2001

TSE-listed firms enjoyed sales increases

Many major Japanese companies, especially manufacturing firms, saw sales increases and net profits in fiscal 2000, which ended March 31, 2001.
BUSINESS
Jun 28, 2001

Businesses expect upturn next quarter

Major businesses are expecting business conditions to improve in the July-September quarter, according to a government survey released Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jun 27, 2001

State aims to spur telecom joust

The government will set up a study panel next month to ponder steps to enhance competition in the telecom market, Toranosuke Katayama, minister for public management, home affairs, posts and telecommunications, said Tuesday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / WEEKEND WISDOM
Jun 24, 2001

U.S. woman aims to help deaf Japanese empower themselves

Virtually everyone who has visited a foreign country is aware of the difficulties of communicating in a foreign language.
JAPAN
Jun 24, 2001

Panel considers debt-forgiveness criteria

A joint study panel of the nation's banking and business circles will work out specific conditions under which troubled corporate borrowers can ask for debt forgiveness, including their board members' resignation, industry sources said Saturday.
BUSINESS
Jun 22, 2001

KVH Telecom to launch Osaka service

OSAKA -- KVH Telecom Co., a Tokyo-based provider of broadband communications services, announced Thursday the launch of its services here, and President and CEO Rakesh Bhasin said he is confident about his firm's first operation outside Tokyo.
JAPAN / INTERNATIONAL RATIONALE
Jun 21, 2001

Localities approach foreign firms to raise tax base

With the economy in the doldrums, cash-strapped local governments have begun warring with each other to attract foreign businesses and the jobs and tax revenue they bring. Touting tax incentives, lower land prices and proximity to factories in related industries, they are encouraging foreign firms to...
JAPAN
Jun 20, 2001

Japan urges China to drop special tariffs

Japan urged China on Tuesday to retract a decision to slap special tariffs on cars, mobile phones and air conditioners imported from Japan in retaliation for emergency curbs imposed by Japan on Chinese farm imports.
JAPAN
Jun 19, 2001

Nonutilities slow to light up newly opened market

Fifteen months after the partial liberalization of the electricity retail market, new players in the industry remain scarce.
LIFE / Travel
Jun 19, 2001

Where the trade routes cross

Fifty years ago, travelers on American roads used to watch for trucks parked by roadside diners. Most people believed that truckers knew the best places to eat, and that any restaurant with trucks parked in front of it would serve good food.
BUSINESS
Jun 18, 2001

State can be valuable captain in privatized firms

Despite Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's claims that privatization is a concept undergoing a rethink and should be considered carefully before implementation, the truth is privatization has been thriving for some time abroad.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 17, 2001

Gourmet meals on wheels

Chris Takahashi spent years making dishes for some of the world's most fussy eaters -- New Yorkers. On returning to his home country a few years ago after 27 years away, instead of trying to slot into some kind of salaried position in a society where he felt completely lost, he decided to do what he...
BUSINESS
Jun 15, 2001

Keidanren backs Koizumi's reform initiatives

The Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren) pledged its "full support" Thursday for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's structural reform initiatives, even if such steps bring a negative impact on the economy.
EDITORIALS
Jun 14, 2001

Long-term gain worth the pain

Japan's gross domestic product in the first quarter of the year dropped 0.2 percent from the previous quarter, or 0.8 percent at the annualized rate, according to figures released Monday by the Cabinet Office. Economic indicators since April also show the economy is decelerating. Mr. Heizo Takenaka,...
BUSINESS
Jun 14, 2001

Amazon Japan adds video tapes, CDs, DVDs

The Japanese unit of Amazon.com announced Wednesday its expansion to sell compact discs, digital versatile discs and video tapes, but said there was no sign of the company making a profit yet.
BUSINESS
Jun 6, 2001

Market turbulence will keep yen volatile

With the weak euro dragging down the dollar, the yen has gained strong upward momentum in recent weeks.
BUSINESS
Jun 5, 2001

Major life insurers feel pinch

Low interest rates, a sluggish stock market and a steady stream of policy terminations continued to squeeze major life insurers, according to results for the 2000 business year released Monday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 3, 2001

Clearing the shelves

Many business owners on the verge of financial ruin probably are loath to close the book on their companies. Yet, for long-term Nagoya resident Marvin Harvest, endeavors to write the ending to his 10-year business have dragged on like a bad saga.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / PERSONALITY PROFILE
Jun 2, 2001

Glen S. Fukushima

"To me, the U.S. and Japan are fascinating, as they stand at polar extremes in the way their societies are organized. Philosophy, culture, history set Japan apart from other industrialized countries, especially the U.S. Having spent many years in both the U.S. and Japan, I enjoy assisting the two peoples...
BUSINESS
May 29, 2001

Keidanren hopeful over Russia visit

Takashi Imai, chairman of the Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren), said Monday he hopes an upcoming government-sponsored economic mission to Russia will be an important opportunity to revitalize bilateral economic cooperation.
JAPAN
May 27, 2001

Roland creator follows his own tune to international success

OSAKA -- From its humble beginnings almost 30 years ago, Roland Corp. today is one of the world's top electronic musical instrument manufacturers. In fact, nearly any musical performance features the ubiquitous brand name somewhere on stage.
CULTURE / Books
May 27, 2001

Japan's traditions aren't lost, they're buried

DOGS AND DEMONS: Tales From the Dark Side of Japan, by Alex Kerr. Hill and Wang, 2001, 432 pp., $27 (cloth). An ancient Chinese tale holds that dogs are difficult to draw because they are ubiquitous; demons are easy to create because they spring from the artist's imagination. Or, to put it more plainly,...
BUSINESS
May 26, 2001

Youth favors new Fuji chief

Kyoji Takenaka, the incoming president of Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd., is determined to make the company a full-fledged global player with "premium brand" vehicles.
BUSINESS
May 24, 2001

Tobishima reports return to profit

Construction firm Tobishima Corp. said Wednesday its group net balance returned to the black in fiscal 2000, mainly due to sales of securities holdings.
JAPAN
May 23, 2001

Loan firms linked to rise in personal bankruptcies

With colorful billboards at train stations, TV commercials showing Brazilian soccer legend Zico or a carefree, successful young woman, major consumer loan firms seem to have shed the shady images that previously haunted them.
JAPAN
May 20, 2001

NTT West may halve its branch offices

NTT West Corp. is considering integrating and consolidating its 30 branch offices to between 10 and 15 in a bid to streamline operations, cut costs and weather intensifying competition, company sources said Saturday.
BUSINESS
May 16, 2001

Ito-Yokado opens round-the-clock bank

IYBank, the new branch-free bank created by major retailer Ito-Yokado Co. and its convenience store subsidiary Seven-Eleven Japan Co., opened for business Tuesday offering 24-hour service through automated teller machines.

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