Search - 2000

 
 
BUSINESS
Jul 13, 2000

Don't sell firms' future IT potential short

A key topic for discussion at last week's Group of Seven finance ministers' meeting was information technology, indicating that the leaders of industrial nations have recognized the important role IT plays in global economic growth and development.
LIFE / Food & Drink / WINE WAYS
Jul 13, 2000

Legacy of Thomas Jefferson thrives in Virginian vineyards

All the rich green trees Mother Nature ever created seemed to be growing here, covering low-lying mountains festooned with wispy mist, under a mantle of robin-egg blue. Once again I was back in Virginia, and once again glad of it. Even without a single winery the Commonwealth of Virginia would rank among...
CULTURE / Books
Jul 13, 2000

Politicians ever eager to please

THE JAPANESE POLITICAL PERSONALITY: Analyzing the Motivations and Culture of Freshman Diet Members, by Ofer Feldman. St. Martin's Press/Macmillan Press, 2000, 182 pp. (cloth), unpriced. The popular conception of the Japanese politician is that of a man (almost always), who is pushed and prodded by...
CULTURE / Books
Jul 13, 2000

No easy explanation for overseas Chinese success

ETHNIC CHINESE: Their Economy, Politics and Culture, edited by Yu Chunghsun. Tokyo: The Japan Times, 2000, 247 pp., 2,800 yen (cloth). The essays in this book explore the role of the ethnic Chinese economies in economic recovery and development in Asia in the 21st century. They are largely the product...
BUSINESS
Jul 13, 2000

S&P warns local governments about debts

In its first report on the general credit status of local governments in Japan, Standard & Poor's on Wednesday reported strong credit quality, but warned of high debts increasing the burdens on such local bodies.
JAPAN
Jul 11, 2000

Japan to sign pacts when Putin visits

Japan and Russia will sign more than 10 documents during President Vladimir Putin's official visit to Tokyo in early September to boost cooperation in various areas and maintain the momentum toward strengthened bilateral ties, government sources said Monday.
BUSINESS
Jul 11, 2000

Private machinery orders up 4.5%

Domestic core private-sector machinery orders in May rose a seasonally adjusted 4.5 percent from the previous month, rebounding from a four-month losing streak in month-on-month terms, the Economic Planning Agency said Monday.
CULTURE / Music / MUSIC NOMAD
Jul 11, 2000

Reverberations of a sonic boom

The live scene for world and roots music in Japan, especially for those living in Tokyo, has never been so healthy. This year, many top artists from Cuba, Eastern Europe, the Celtic countries, Northern Europe, Brazil and Africa have already visited or will be visiting Japan -- a situation almost unthinkable...
JAPAN
Jul 8, 2000

Kono talks on North Korea, the G8 summit and Russia

The government "will not simply stay idle" in its relations with North Korea, Foreign Minister Yohei Kono said Thursday, noting that Tokyo is ready to reopen stalled normalization talks with Pyongyang following its recent moves to open up to the outside world.
JAPAN
Jul 8, 2000

Conflicts hurt human rights: U.N.

Conflict prevention and resolution are two of the most important elements in protecting human rights, the head of the U.N. Human Rights Commission said Friday at a symposium in Tokyo.
BUSINESS
Jul 8, 2000

State should nurture industries: Sakaiya

The government should swiftly come up with measures to nurture fledgling industries in order to accelerate Japan's economic growth, Economic Planning Agency chief Taichi Sakaiya said.
JAPAN
Jul 7, 2000

Red Army Faction fugitive details deportation from Lebanon

Masao Adachi, one of four Japanese Red Army Faction fugitives who were deported to Japan from Lebanon and arrested upon their arrival in March, has given Kyodo News a detailed description of how they were handed over.
BUSINESS
Jul 7, 2000

Minivehicle sales set record of near 1 million in first half

Minivehicle sales in Japan in the first six months of 2000 rose 3 percent from a year before to 996,096, a record high for any half-year period, an industry body said Thursday.
JAPAN
Jul 7, 2000

Japan accepts U.S. demand for 41% NTT fee cut by '02

Kyodo News The government plans to cut interconnection fees charged by Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. by 41.1 percent by the end of 2002, a move Tokyo hopes will resolve a bitter trade row with the United States before this month's Group of Eight summit in Okinawa.
JAPAN
Jul 6, 2000

Mori seeks a 'reborn Japan'

A day after the launch of his new Cabinet, Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori stressed his determination Wednesday to create a "reborn Japan" by improving the economy and promoting the development of information technology.
BUSINESS
Jul 6, 2000

NEC, Mitsubishi unit to hike spending

In a effort to play a larger part in the ongoing information technology revolution, computer manufacturer NEC Corp. and electric appliance maker Mitsubishi Electric Corp. on Wednesday unveiled expansionary business plans.
COMMENTARY / WASHINGTON UPDATE
Jul 6, 2000

Bush pulls ahead in presidential polls

Texas Gov. George W. Bush continues to enhance his lead in the polls over Vice President Al Gore in the 2000 presidential race. Despite what we believe about the value of polling at this time in the contest, Bush's success on the campaign trail contrasts with Gore's constant difficulties (with staff,...
BUSINESS
Jul 5, 2000

Hotel bankruptcies hit postbubble high

The number of bankruptcies of inns and hotels rose 8.4 percent in fiscal 1999 from the previous year to 90, the worst figure since the burst of the late 1980s bubble economy, a private credit research institution said Tuesday.
JAPAN
Jul 5, 2000

Newly appointed ministers announce policy priorities

The ministers appointed to the second Cabinet of Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori announced their priority tasks in separate press conferences Tuesday evening.
BUSINESS
Jul 5, 2000

Japan to resume yen loans to Colombia

After nearly five years of suspension, Japan will resume official yen loans to Colombia to help the Latin American country rebuild its shattered economy, government sources said Tuesday.
EDITORIALS
Jul 4, 2000

A step toward financial stability

The Financial Agency, which was launched Saturday in a major move to integrate the operating and planning roles of financial policymaking bodies, started actual operations on Monday. The new financial-watchdog body combines the Financial Supervisory Agency and the Finance Ministry's Financial Planning...
BUSINESS
Jul 4, 2000

Domestic vehicle sales mark 2% first-half rise

Domestic sales of new cars, trucks and buses in the first half of 2000 increased 2 percent from the same period last year to 2,113,357 vehicles, the first year-on-year rise in three years, an industry association said Monday.
JAPAN
Jul 4, 2000

Diet members earn more despite slump

The average income among Diet members in 1999 was 30.44 million yen, up 1.94 million yen from a year earlier, according to a report released Monday.
JAPAN
Jul 4, 2000

Mori re-elected prime minister, selects his new Cabinet

A majority of House of Representatives members voted to have Mori -- president of the Liberal Democratic Party -- keep the prime ministership as the Diet convened for a three-day special session. Mori was also re-elected prime minister by the House of Councilors.
CULTURE / Books / THE ASIAN BOOKSHELF
Jul 4, 2000

Japan searches for itself and finds 'Genji'

YOSANO AKIKO AND "THE TALE OF THE GENJI," by G.G. Rowley. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan, 2000, 222 pp., $32.95. There seems to be something of a "Genji" frenzy going on right now. Liza Dalby has the author writing her memoirs in her new book, "The Tale of Murasaki"; Ichinohe Saeko has a full-length...
JAPAN
Jul 1, 2000

NPA alarmed by huge rise in lock-picking burglaries

Alarmed by the sharp rise in the number of burglaries involving picked locks, the National Police Agency is taking tougher measures to put the brakes on the trend.
JAPAN
Jul 1, 2000

Japan and Russia plan new pact on economy

Japan and Russia are likely to compile a new comprehensive package of economic cooperation measures to replace the three-year Hashimoto-Yeltsin Plan, which is to expire at the end of this year, government sources said Friday.
JAPAN
Jun 30, 2000

Birthrate drops to record low

The birthrate and the number of births in Japan sank to record lows last year, accelerating the widespread graying of the population, according to data released Thursday by the Health and Welfare Ministry.
LIFE / Travel
Jun 29, 2000

Take the sunset road to Fukuoka's natural lifestyle zone

"Everyone wants to head west," an architect friend told me recently. "It's natural. That's where the sun sets, and where thoughts of relaxation turn to at the end of the day."

Longform

Dangami House is a 180-year-old former samurai residence of the Kato clan, who ruled over Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, until the Meiji Restoration.
A house, a legacy and the quiet work of restoration in rural Japan