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JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 31, 2023

Tokyo ‘Joker’ train attacker sentenced to 23-year prison term

The Tokyo District Court ruled that Kyota Hattori stabbed a 72-year-old man and intended to murder 12 passengers by lighting a fire.
Signage for Sumitomo Mitsui Banking (right) and Mizuho Bank (center) in Tokyo. Two of Japan's mega-banks reported solid quarterly profit on Monday.
BUSINESS
Jul 31, 2023

Japan’s biggest banks beat estimates, adding to BOJ tailwind

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group said net income for the quarter ending June 30 was ¥248 billion, while Mizuho Financial Group’s was ¥245.2 billion.
Former sumo wrestler Daisuke Yanagihara discusses his lawsuit against the Japan Sumo Association during a news conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan on Monday.
SUMO
Aug 1, 2023

Former wrestler sues sumo association for alleged mistreatment

The former fourth-division rikishi said he was told to fight or quit as coronavirus cases rose in Tokyo ahead of the 2021 New Year Basho.
JAPAN
Aug 1, 2023

Kishida aide Kihara sidesteps reporters after wife in the spotlight

Weekly magazine Shukan Bunshun reported that Kihara's wife had been questioned by Tokyo Metro Police on a voluntary basis.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 1, 2023

Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke IV released on ¥5 million bail

Suspected of helping his parents commit suicide, Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke IV was released on Monday, with bail set at ¥5 million.
Japan’s unemployment rate fell for the first time in two months in June, feeding into optimism that upward pressure on wages may persist and help sustain inflation.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 1, 2023

Japan's jobless rate falls in positive sign for wages, BOJ goal

The jobless rate fell to 2.5%, the ministry of internal affairs said Tuesday, the lowest since January.
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike is highly likely to run for a third term in the capital's gubernatorial election in summer 2024, according to sources familiar with the matter.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 1, 2023

Tokyo's Gov. Koike expected to run for third term in 2024 race

Koike was first elected governor of the capital in 2016, and won a landslide victory in 2020.
Neither Neymar (left) nor summer signing Lee Kang-in appeared for Paris Saint-Germain in the team's friendly against Inter at Tokyo's National Stadium on Tuesday.
SOCCER
Aug 1, 2023

Neymar sits out PSG's last Japan game in defeat to Inter

The Brazilian star, who is recovering from ankle surgery, drew loud cheers at the National Stadium but was not brought on by new manager Luis Enrique.
JAPAN
Aug 2, 2023

Typhoon Khanun kills one, cuts power to a third of Okinawa homes

High winds hit power lines in Okinawa Prefecture and knocked out electricity to more than 200,000 households on Wednesday morning.
Chikako Utsumi holds bottles of Rose Mind at Tenpoichi sake brewer in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Aug 7, 2023

Local Hiroshima sake and beef grow in popularity due to G7

Popular sake Rose Mind has seen its popularity surge since it was served during the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima.
JAPAN
Aug 2, 2023

LDP lawmaker cautioned by party executive over France visit photo

The photo, in which Rui Matsukawa mimics the shape of the Eiffel Tower in front of the landmark, has already been deleted after drawing strong criticism.
BUSINESS
Aug 2, 2023

Japan shares post biggest one-day drop this year

Then benchmark 225-issue Nikkei average closed down 2.30% at 32,707.69 — its sharpest one-day drop since Dec. 20.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 2, 2023

Sushi chain drops suit against teen over prank video

“The customer has admitted his responsibility and we have reached a settlement with reasonable details that are acceptable to us,” a spokesperson said.
Japan head coach Jamie Joseph during a match in London in November.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Aug 3, 2023

Jamie Joseph demands focus as Japan face Fiji in World Cup warm-up

Joseph made four changes to the team that beat Tonga 21-16 last week as Japan continues its World Cup preparations.
JAPAN
Aug 3, 2023

Typhoon Khanun kills two in Okinawa, injures at least 62

Roughly 25% of Okinawa Prefecture — around 166,000 households — had lost electricity as of Thursday morning
Temperatures in excess of 36 degrees Celsius have done little to deter some players of "gateball" in Tokyo this year.
LIFE
Aug 17, 2023

Japan's elderly 'gateball' players unbeaten by the heat

While the game requires little physical exertion, players have to spend time in the punishing sun as two opposing teams carefully hit balls through gates.
Imma, a virtual influencer, is the face of Nomura’s new campaign for tax-free investment accounts.
BUSINESS
Aug 4, 2023

Nomura hires virtual influencer to coax Japan’s young investors

Boosting individual investments is particularly crucial as the country's baby-boomer generation passes on their assets to a younger generation.
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway in June raised its stake in Japan's five major trading firms. All of them beat net-income estimates for the first quarter of the fiscal year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 4, 2023

Buffett’s favored Japan trading firms post solid earnings

The five major trading firms all beat net-income estimates for the first quarter of the fiscal year in reports issued this week.
BUSINESS
Aug 4, 2023

Japan to strengthen resources diplomacy with Africa

Japanese companies have been falling behind foreign rivals in launching resources development projects in Africa.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 4, 2023

Illegal stimulants found in Nihon University football player dorm

Police are planning to conduct a further investigation into the 21-year-old male football player who is suspected of possessing them.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 4, 2023

Kishida confirms plan to merge My Number and health insurance card

Kishida apologized for the anxiety caused by recent errors and announced a series of steps in the hope of restoring public trust.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 4, 2023

U.N. experts criticize Johnny’s sex abuse investigation

The experts called on the government to do more to investigate decades of suspected abuse against male idols by Johnny Kitagawa.
Japan ranked 116 out of 146 countries in last year’s Global Gender Gap Report by the World Economic Forum, far below all of its Group of Seven peers.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 5, 2023

Few top-listed Japan firms have 30% female directors, report says

Only 68 companies on the Prime Market Index of the Tokyo Stock Exchange have 30% or more women represented on the board, the Nikkei daily has reported.
Nymphonella tapetis has become a pest for Manila clam (Ruditapes philippinarum) farms in Tokyo Bay.
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife / OUR PLANET
Aug 6, 2023

There are spiders in the sea surrounding Japan … sort of

Most sea spiders look like a tangle of legs, with little, if any, body to speak of. But they are not actually spiders.
Eisuke Sakakibara, former top finance official, says Japanese authorities are unlikely to intervene in foreign exchange markets to prop up the yen.
BUSINESS
Aug 7, 2023

Japan's 'Mr. Yen' Sakakibara expects no intervention

The yen has fallen around 14% since the Fed began rapidly raising rates to combat soaring inflation in March 2022.
Sweden goalkeeper Zecira Musovic makes a save against the United States during their match at the Women's World Cup in Melbourne on Sunday.
SOCCER / Women's World cup
Aug 7, 2023

Sweden's Zecira Musovic 'in the zone' ahead of clash with Japan

The Chelsea stopper exploded on the global stage with her breathtaking performance in the penalty shootout win against the defending champion U.S.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2023

Scores of horses suffer sunstroke at samurai festival

Organizers may move the annual event — featuring over 400 participants dressed as samurai on horseback — to a cooler time of year.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 8, 2023

Nihon University chairwoman apologizes for student drug scandal

Mariko Hayashi denied reports that she was kept in the dark about facts surrounding the case, which involves the university's American football team.
Some strategists think that foreign investors, who had helped drive one of the world’s biggest rallies so far this year, may pose risks for Japan’s stock market in the second half.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 9, 2023

Global funds that drove Topix rally may now threaten Japan gains

A lack of bold policy measures by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and China's economic slowdown are also seen as curbing the bullish trend.
Speculation over the timing of an anticipated cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida puts it somewhere from mid-September to late in the month.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 10, 2023

Schedule tightens for Kishida to reshuffle Cabinet and LDP chiefs

The prime minister plans to use the reshuffle as an opportunity to boost his popularity, people familiar with his thinking said.

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