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Many of Japan’s largest businesses are exporters that benefit from a weaker yen.
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 30, 2023

Japan’s biggest firms set for $9.3 billion bonanza from weak yen

Many of Japan’s largest businesses are exporters that benefit from a weaker yen.
A rally in support of Israel is held in Tokyo on Oct. 11 during which participants, including Israelis living in Japan, demanded the immediate release of all hostages captured by Hamas during its Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 30, 2023

A primer on the Israel-Hamas war


Japan's image of Israel is shallow and distorted, as many people fail to understand the existential threat that Hamas' aggression poses.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 30, 2023

Kishida says tax hike and tax cut policies ‘don’t contradict’

“An (income tax cut) is a temporary measure until wages increase to a level that can cover rising prices," the prime minister said.
A vegetable store on the Asagaya shopping street in Tokyo on Sunday
BUSINESS
Oct 30, 2023

Japan warns Middle East situation could hit economy

The government added the developments in the Middle East to factors requiring close attention, as it "could pose a downside risk to the Japanese economy."
Ryo and Kaho Nagata greet a regular customer from the second floor of their cafe in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture.
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
Nov 6, 2023

Young migrants bring vitality to rural Hiroshima

Some new residents found a place where they could try something new, as well as having cheaper rents for stores and homes compared to Tokyo.
Single-use bathing wear that comes in the form of a blouse or a dress
JAPAN / Society / Regional Voices: Kyushu
Nov 6, 2023

Breast cancer survivors face tough time at public baths

It is customary in Japan not to take clothing or towels into the water at public baths, and some facilities make it a rule for hygienic reasons.
BOJ Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks during a news conference on Tuesday in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 31, 2023

Bank of Japan to allow 10-year yields to top 1%

The development is significant as the central bank has long maintained its strategy of buying up government bonds to control interest rates.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Oct 31, 2023

Shooting suspect arrested after police raid Saitama post office

Two men were injured in the shooting at a hospital, while two female staff members of the post office were said to be unharmed.
The Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp. headquarters in Taiwan
BUSINESS / Companies
Oct 31, 2023

Taiwan's Powerchip chooses Miyagi Prefecture for $5.4 billion fab

The fab will manufacture chips in the 28-nanometer, 40-nm and 55-nm categories with a planned monthly output of 40,000 wafers, the two companies said.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 31, 2023

Defense chief condemns ‘outrageous’ response in SDF harassment case

A male perpetrator of sexual assault was forced to apologize directly to the female victim despite her wishes not to see him.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 1, 2023

Elderly Saitama hostage-taker had 'grudge' against post office

The 86-year-old man was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of shooting into a hospital in Saitama Prefecture and taking hostages at a post office.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 1, 2023

Hotly debated tax cuts risk backfiring on Kishida administration

When Kishida announced plans to cut income and residence taxes to ease the hit from inflation, there was a chorus of skepticism rather than joy.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 2, 2023

For Atsuki Yuasa, all it took was one pitch to spur Tigers' win

Yuasa received an immense hero’s welcome from Tigers fans Wednesday night but there was no time to soak in the atmosphere.
JAPAN
Nov 2, 2023

10 Japanese with 8 Palestinian family members flee Gaza to Egypt

Another Japanese national who is married to a Palestinian and lives in Gaza intends to stay there with the family, the chief cabinet secretary said.
The world's largest pension fund lost 0.31% for the three months from July to September, trimming its overall assets to ¥219.3 trillion.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 2, 2023

Japan's GPIF reports ¥683 billion loss in July-September period

The news comes as a policy tweak by the central bank hits the government bond market.
Every time Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda has made an announcement since taking up his post, that information has appeared initially not in the public domain, but in the pages of the fourth estate.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Nov 2, 2023

Bank of Japan leaks are making an awful mess

Central bank decisions can move billions of dollars and with the BOJ, the closely watched outlier that it is, its conclusions have more impact than most.
The civil case centers on whether a foreign national in a same-sex partnership with a Japanese citizen should be granted “long-term resident status,” which allows residency for up to five years in Japan.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 2, 2023

Tokyo High Court rejects same-sex couple's residence status lawsuit

The civil case centers on whether a foreign national in a same-sex partnership with a Japanese citizen should be granted “long-term resident status.”
New Zealand's openside flanker and captain Sam Cane (right) walks on the field with his silver medal after South Africa won the France 2023 Rugby World Cup final against New Zealand in Saint-Denis, France, on Sunday.
MORE SPORTS / Rugby
Nov 3, 2023

All Blacks captain Sam Cane to join Suntory

Cane has taken a sabbatical option in his New Zealand Rugby contract.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 3, 2023

With Naoto Kan's exit from the CDP, some see a generational shift

The exit of the former prime minister, a high-profile figure and political veteran from the CDP’s liberal wing, comes at a time of change for the party.
Sometimes just saying that you won't break a promise isn't enough. You may need the power of the pinky finger.
LIFE / Language / Vocabulary Boost
Nov 3, 2023

Breaking a promise comes with sharp penalties in Japan

An interesting element that is present in both Japanese and English rhymes around pinky promises is the idea of needles.
JAPAN
Nov 3, 2023

Kansai Electric applies to run Takahama reactor beyond 50th year

The No. 1 reactor at the plant in Fukui Prefecture is the oldest active reactor in Japan, having been commissioned in November 1974.
The Hong Kong skyline. The city's sedition law — one of the legacies of British rule — had remained dormant for over half a century but saw a resurgence in use following the 2019 protests and subsequent unrest.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Nov 3, 2023

H.K. student gets two-month sentence for 'seditious' posts from Japan

The court said she had violated a colonial-era sedition law by expressing support for Hong Kong independence in posts mostly made while studying in Japan.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts
Nov 5, 2023

In likely farewell, Yamamoto dazzles one last time for Buffaloes fans

Yamamoto proved his manager right in one of the most important outings of his career Saturday — potentially his last in NPB.
Former Prime Minister Naoto Kan delivers a speech during an anti-government rally in Tokyo in October 2017.
JAPAN
Nov 5, 2023

Ex-Prime Minister Kan officially announces he will not run in next Lower House election

Kan named Musashino Mayor Reiko Matsushita as his successor in the Tokyo No. 18 constituency of the lower chamber of the Diet, Japan's parliament.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 5, 2023

Buffaloes to allow ace pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto to move to MLB

The move was widely expected before the Buffaloes made it official.
JAPAN / Explainer
Nov 6, 2023

What to know about the Meiji Jingu Gaien redevelopment plan

The project is controversial due to the potential felling of thousands of trees, loss of green space and threat to historic gingko trees.
Japan's real wages dropped 2.4% in September from a year earlier.
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 7, 2023

Japan's wages and spending extend declines in test for BOJ policy

Japan's real wages dropped 2.4% in September from a year earlier.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Nov 7, 2023

Tokyo rewrites November temperature record set 100 years ago

The mercury hit 27.5 degrees Celsius in the Japanese capital on Tuesday, topping the November 1923 mark of 27.3 C.
JAPAN
Nov 8, 2023

Bill on sperm and egg donors seeks disclosure of some information

The draft seeks to allow information that is not personally identifiable, such as height, blood type and age, to be disclosed without donor's consent
The construction site of a new Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. factory in Kikuyo, Kumamoto Prefecture
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 9, 2023

Japan set to earmark ¥2 trillion for chips in extra budget

Japan is in the midst of a spending spree to revive its chip industry with an aim to triple the sales of domestically produced semiconductors by 2030.

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