Search - 2021

 
 
After the asset-price bubble crash of the early 1990s, employment at a Japanese company was no longer necessarily for life. As a result, a new generation is less willing to endure a toxic work culture —life’s too short, after all.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Jun 2, 2025

How Japan's youth are slowly changing the country's work ethic

Labor shortages and shifting mindsets are driving younger Japanese workers to challenge the country’s traditional office culture.
Dodgers starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto throws a pitch against the Yankees during the first inning at Dodger Stadium on Sunday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jun 2, 2025

Yamamoto struggles as Yankees shut down Dodgers to avoid sweep

Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto gave up four runs while tying a career high with seven hits allowed in 3 2/3 innings as he gave up three walks.
Investigators inspect a construction site in Tokyo's Edogawa Ward on May 28 after an explosion occurred there a day earlier.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 2, 2025

Tokyo construction site blast caused by gas cylinder buried in the ground

The gas cylinder "may have been illegally dumped a long time ago" at the site, which was a paved parking lot for about 40 years.
Then-<i>yokozuna</i> Hakuho performs the New Year's ring-entering rite in 2018. The Japan Sumo Association has accepted his resignation and he will officially leave the association on June 9.
SUMO
Jun 2, 2025

Former yokozuna Hakuho to leave sumo association

Hakuho's departure comes more than a year after his stable closed down over a physical abuse incident involving one of its wrestlers.
Honda will provide a fleet of cars for athletes, officials and stakeholders, along with motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles and other multipurpose vehicles during the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 3, 2025

Honda joins 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games as major partner

The carmaker will provide a fleet of cars for athletes, officials and stakeholders, along with motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles and other multipurpose vehicles during the event.
Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene speaks at the parliament in Ulaanbaatar on Monday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Jun 3, 2025

Mongolia prime minister resigns after losing confidence vote among lawmakers

Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene will remain as caretaker prime minister until his successor is appointed within 30 days.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer passes a Royal Navy nuclear-powered submarine at a shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness, England, on March 20.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 3, 2025

Welfare demands put pressure on Starmer's commitment to defense overhaul

Labour lawmakers want to prioritize domestic issues blowing back on the left-leaning party at the ballot box, such as controversial benefit cuts.
A man weaves cane into a chinlone ball, used in the ancient Myanmar game considered a blend of sport and art, at a workshop in Hinthada township in the Irrawaddy delta region.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jun 3, 2025

Ancient Myanmar ball game battles for survival in troubled nation

Myanmar's 2021 military coup and subsequent civil war have made it increasingly difficult for craftsmen to source materials for chinlone balls.
The LGBTQ  community in the U.S. has expressed shock and dismay regarding government plans to slash the Health and Human Services Department's budget, which includes the elimination of specialised mental health services for LGBTQ  youth.
WORLD / Society
Jun 3, 2025

LGBTQ+ suicide risk rises as Trump cuts mental health services

Since returning to office in January, Trump has signed executive orders to curb LGBTQ+ rights, many of which directly impact young people.
Laleli's informal shipping scene, once a bustling hub of cross-continental trade, is now facing growing pressure from rising costs and tougher residency rules imposed by Turkish authorities.
BUSINESS
Jun 3, 2025

Tough residency rules and Chinese competition squeeze Istanbul's 'suitcase trade'

Shipments have dropped, even as Turkish exports to Africa have generally soared — from $11.5 billion in 2017 to $19.4 billion last year.
Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau reacts in the fourth quarter against the Indiana Pacers during Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals of the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Madison Square Garden, New York City on Thursday.
BASKETBALL / NBA
Jun 4, 2025

Knicks fire Thibodeau as coach after exiting NBA playoffs

The Knicks, who have not won the NBA title since 1973, fell to Indiana in six games in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference Finals.
Manny Pacquiao raises his fist during a press conference ahead of his July 19 WBC welterweight title fight against Mexican-US boxer Mario Barrios in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
MORE SPORTS / Boxing
Jun 4, 2025

'Rested' Pacquiao relishing boxing comeback at 46

The charismatic Filipino boxing icon stunned the sports world last month after announcing he would take on WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios four years after his last fight.
Solar panels at an industrial complex in Rajasthan, India, are an example of India-Japan renewable energy cooperation. The two countries can strengthen their ties by co-developing green and advanced technologies, solar energy among them.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jun 4, 2025

The ground is fertile for Japan-India green economy partnerships

Japan and India can build on their long-standing relationship to spearhead the development of green and advanced technologies such as renewable energy and chips.
Lawson plans to sell 1-kilogram and 2-kg bags of rice it bought from the government's stockpile at ¥360 ($2.50) and ¥700 respectively.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 4, 2025

Aging rice? Lawson prefers to call it 'vintage.'

As convenience stores prepare to sell government stockpiled rice from older harvests to consumers, Lawson says it will offer rice balls made of "vintage rice."
Afghan refugees queue outside a distribution and donation center in New Jersey in December 2021. U.S. President Donald Trump's second-term travel ban covers 12 countries, including Afghanistan.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 5, 2025

Trump signs travel ban for 12 countries including Afghanistan

The move is the latest step in what has been a sweeping immigration agenda aimed at cracking down on undocumented migration.
Kosei Tanaka speaks during a news conference to announce his retirement in Nagoya on Wednesday.
MORE SPORTS / Boxing
Jun 5, 2025

Four-division world champion Kosei Tanaka retires at 29 due to eye injuries

Tanaka is the fastest boxer to earn belts at four different weights.
Hideo Nakata, deputy mayor of Nagoya, waves the Olympic Council of Asia flag as Aichi Gov. Hideaki Omura watches during the closing ceremony of the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, on Oct. 8, 2023.
MORE SPORTS
Jun 5, 2025

Organizers to house athletes on 'floating village' during 2026 Asian Games

Organizers will lease a luxury cruise liner that will be docked at Nagoya's port.
The election of Lee Jae-myung signals South Korea’s leftward shift on energy policy, but despite his ambitious renewable plans, deep-rooted regulatory, financial and geographic challenges threaten to stall progress unless reforms are swift and systemic.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 5, 2025

South Korea's new president has a chance to clean up

Years of inertia and obstruction of the transition have left the country with a system plagued by high costs and the lowest renewable penetration among developed economies.
The measures to sanction judges follow a January vote at the U.S. House of Representatives to punish the International Criminal Court in protest over its arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jun 6, 2025

Trump administration imposes sanctions on four ICC judges in unprecedented move

The ICC slammed the move, saying it was an attempt to undermine the independence of an international judicial institution.
Takuya Haraguchi, head of ReFruits, speaks while looking at the kiwifruit vine at his farm in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, on April 24. A newcomer to farming, he hopes to revive the area by growing kiwifruits in this former no-go zone.
JAPAN
Jun 6, 2025

'Moving forward': the Gen Z farmer growing Fukushima kiwifruits

Fukushima is renowned for its delicious fruit, from pears to peaches, but the nuclear disaster led many people in Japan to shun produce grown there.
Former Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers throws a pass during the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins at MetLife Stadium, New Jersey on Jan. 5.
MORE SPORTS / Football
Jun 6, 2025

Four-time NFL MVP Rodgers agrees to deal with Steelers

The Steelers lacked a veteran signal caller after Russell Wilson was signed by the New York Giants, but in Rodgers have landed a future Hall of Fame quarterback.
Agriculture minister Shinjiro Koizumi speaks to the media as he inspects a warehouse storing stockpiled rice in Kanagawa Prefecture on May 30.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 6, 2025

From ridicule to redemption: Rice crisis returns Koizumi to the spotlight

The lawmaker, sometimes said to be long on image and short on substance, has won praise for bringing down the price of rice.
Novak Djokovic waves to the crowd after his semifinal defeat at the French Open in Paris on Friday.
TENNIS
Jun 7, 2025

'Honoured' Djokovic hints at possible Roland Garros farewell after semifinal loss

Following his loss to Sinner, Djokovic stopped briefly on his way off Court Philippe Chatrier and took a moment to "show his gratitude" to the Paris crowd.
Women aspiring to enter politics attend a class at a school for future female politicians in Gifu Prefecture.
JAPAN
Jun 8, 2025

Over half of local assemblywomen suffer harassment, survey shows

Specifically, "verbal abuse" was cited by both male and female members as the leading form of harassment.
An industrial park in Yiwu, Zhejiang province, China. Nomura Holdings plans to shut its branch in the province by the end of the year, according to sources.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 9, 2025

Nomura to shut branch in China as it scales back wealth business

The company’s brokerage subsidiary plans to shut its branch in Zhejiang province by the end of the year.
Former yokozuna Hakuho gives a news conference to announce his retirement from the Japan Sumo Association and reveal his future plans in Tokyo on Monday.
SUMO
Jun 9, 2025

Hakuho vows to grow sumo globally after exiting domestic sports body

The impetus for the decision, Hakuho said, was the failure of the Japan Sumo Association to provide a clear timeline about the restoration of Miyagino stable.
The Japan Securities Dealers Association sent questionnaires to major Japanese and foreign brokerages asking about bond selling irregularities.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 9, 2025

JSDA said to probe brokerages on unsuitable Japanese bond sales

The probe marks a step toward ridding Japan’s primary bond market of opaque sales practices as rising interest rates boost investor appetite for debt with higher yields.
Members of law enforcement operate amid a standoff between police and protesters following multiple detentions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in the Los Angeles County city of Compton, California, on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 10, 2025

Los Angeles ICE raids fuel controversy over masked agents

The moves have ignited a politically charged debate over whether the agents are protecting their identities or engaging in intimidation tactics.
Emma Raducanu in action during her women's doubles round of 16 match with Katie Boulter against Jiang Xinyu and Wu Fang-hsien at Queen's Club in London on Monday
TENNIS
Jun 10, 2025

Raducanu stars as women's tennis makes historic return to Queen's

Queen's has been solely an ATP event since 1973, but a groundbreaking deal was struck last year to play a WTA 500 tournament in Barons Court.
A plastic bottle lies on the sand at Maccarese beach in Italy in 2018.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Jun 10, 2025

Development banks to invest €3 billion in ocean plastics fight

Plastic waste entering the water could triple to up to 37 million metric tons per year by 2040, from around 11 million tons in 2021, the U.N. estimates.

Longform

In 2020, 38% of all households were single-person. That figure is projected to rise to 44.3% by 2050.
The rise of AI companionship in a lonely Japan